Blue Like You
by garconne
Summary: Focuses on Raven, Erik, and Charles during/after the events of First Class. Category fixed. Click for chapter summaries!
1. Deleted Scenes

**Blue Like You**

Ch1 _Deleted Scenes_: Raven discovers one of Erik's dark secrets and tries to ease his shame, but the two of them struggle to keep the true nature of their friendship hidden from Charles.

Ch2 _Divisions_: Raven is captured by a mysterious anti-mutant army, and Erik must team up with Charles in order to save her. (Introduces an OC.)

Ch3_ New Lives_: Raven becomes pregnant and goes into labor at a rather inconvenient time, leaving her in desperate need of her friends' protection.

Ch4 _Pulse_: After Beast goes missing, Charles calls on the help of Erik and Raven, but the situation quickly becomes much more dangerous than anyone expects.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 1: Deleted Scenes<strong>

_Note: The events of this chapter take place AFTER Raven shows up in Erik's bed, but BEFORE Hank injects his foot. In the film, Hank's scene occurs before Raven's, and both happen in the same night, but this chapter presupposes that the two events occurred in reverse order with lots of time in between._

Being kissed by Erik – on her real, blue lips – sent both butterflies and courage through Raven's body. She leaned in and kissed him again, touching his neck as she did, showing him she wanted more.

"Come on, now," he said, pulling away, "It was only meant to be one kiss."

"Please," she responded, instantly regretting how pathetic it sounded. "No one's ever wanted to do it when I looked like this."

"It's not that I don't _want_ to…"

"Then what? Don't you think I'm old enough to know what I want?"

Erik sighed, "Alright. But this is a one-time thing, understand?"

She nodded.

"And I don't want to hear the L-word come out of you or any of that nonsense."

"Don't talk to me like I'm a child," Raven shot back, "I know what a one-night-stand is, and that's what I want."

And with that, she pulled off his shirt and resumed kissing him. He kissed down her neck to the side of her breast, fondling the soft tissue. She let out a blissful sigh.

"God, I'd never felt that on my real skin…"

He looked up at her. "Feels good, doesn't it?"

"It feels…real."

Erik positioned himself on top of her, kissed her, then moved down to her waist with a smirk. Raven's eyes widened as she watched him. He kissed her hip, another new sensation for her blue skin, and then moved farther down. Suddenly, he let out a low, soft laugh.

Raven opened her eyes and looked down at him. He was looking directly at her crotch. Suddenly nervous, her heart raced.

"What is it?" she asked.

"You're so…_blue_," he said, staring up at her with bold eyes.

She laughed a little, "Well, I guess that makes sense…"

"It's magnificent," he said, moving toward her sensitive area with his mouth, sending waves of ecstasy through her as he made contact.

"Oh my god," she said after he'd been pleasuring her for a few moments, "Erik…" she sat up to look at him, "I think it's time to get you out of those pants."

He smirked at her boldness and quickly stood to undo his belt. Naked, he again crawled on top of her and gave her the most pleasurable, passionate night of her life so far, which included her first sex-induced orgasm in her true skin.

Lying in bed afterward, Raven couldn't help but smile. "Thank you," she said, looking over at him.

He leaned over toward her, cupped the back of her head to pull her closer, and kissed her forehead. "My pleasure."

"I love-"

"Hey," he said, removing his hand, "What did I tell you-"

"Relax! I was going to say I _loved it_," she laughed. "But you know," she said as she stood and moved toward the door, "since I broke that rule, feel free to break the one about this being a one-time thing." She winked at him from the threshold.

"Did you want your robe?"

"Nope," she said with a smirk, and left.

In the week that followed, the two of them routinely met at night. During the day, he'd shoot her a knowing glance and she'd take it as an invitation, or she'd just pop in when she felt like it. They managed to keep it a secret from Charles, since Raven wasn't worried about him reading her mind, and Erik had a technique of forcing his thoughts in another direction when Charles was around. It seemed to be working, too, because Charles never acted differently around either of them.

One night, after another passionate session, as they lay partially dosing off, Raven rolled onto her side, propping her head up with her hand to look at him. She had an idea.

"I don't always have to be _me_, you know."

"What do you mean?" he asked, studying her face. He couldn't be sure what she was implying.

"I can be anyone you want," she said, moving closer to him, "Look like _anyone_ you've _ever_ fantasized about."

"Why would you want to do that?" he said softly, running a hand over her smooth hair.

"Because you've done so much for me. You've been so kind…"

"Don't mistake lust for kindness, love. That's that teenage-thinking."

"But you _are_ kind. You've given me courage and self-confidence I had almost given up on finding… You gave me _my_ fantasy."

He smiled and rolled over. "Go to sleep, Raven."

"Just think about it," she said.

A few nights later, heading to Erik's room, Raven was hoping he'd thought about it and would be ready to open up to her about someone he'd like her to look like. She really couldn't guess who he'd pick; would it be someone from his past? Some celebrity? Someone they knew? Her curiosity burning, she opened his door and peeked in.

"Knock, knock."

He looked up from a newspaper he'd been reading and seemed genuinely happy to see her.

She closed the door behind her and walked toward him, moving the paper and straddling him in his chair. He kissed her, but her curiosity overflowed and she broke it off after a few seconds.

"So," she said, stroking his cheek, "Did you think about my idea? Who you might want me to be?"

He sighed, slouching back in the chair. "Are you _still_ going on about that?"

"Come on," she said, "Why wouldn't you want to? If you just tell me, I can change _right now_. It'll be so fun!"

He scooted her off of his lap so he could stand. He walked over to his table and lifted a cigar to his lips.

"Raven, you really need to stop this. This isn't a game. You need to drop it." He lit the cigar.

"What are you so afraid of," she asked, walking toward him. "I don't care who you pick. It can be anyone. I don't see the big deal. It's easy." She quickly transformed through a series of outrageously attractive women, landing back on herself.

"I asked you to drop it."

"Wow, I really thought I could do something nice for you, here," she threw out her arms and let her eyes dart around the room. "I didn't think you'd be so ridiculous about this," she shook her head.

He smoked and said nothing.

Her curiosity had given way to anger. "If you would just fucking tell me –"

"_Charles_," he snapped, cutting her off.

She blinked, stunned at what she thought she'd heard. "What?"

"Fantasies aren't so fun when you know the reality of them, are they?" he bitterly quipped.

"Erik…I…He's my…."

"Get out."

Still utterly shocked and uncomfortable, Raven obeyed and left the room. Erik figured she wouldn't be returning anymore after that exchange. In a way, he thought it served her right for pressing the issue so much.

Back in her own room, she sat on the edge of her bed and replayed the scene in her head in disbelief. _Charles_? Had he really said that? She had to admit, when she'd said "anyone," she hadn't even considered for a second that he might not choose a woman. She felt stupid; what had she expected? To transform into a model and scatter rose petals and candles? _More of that teenage-thinking_, she thought, sighing. She turned off her lamp and slid into her sheets. She realized how much she didn't want her friendship with Erik to end and cried into her pillow.

The next day, with a clear head, she gave more thought to the idea while exercising. It seemed crazy to think of transforming into a man she considered her brother, but where was the real harm? She wouldn't be watching herself, only Erik would. And after all his kindness, and all the hardships he'd been through, she felt she might regret it forever if she refused him. She knew how much it hurt when people had rejected her in the past, and she could only imagine how much courage it had taken for him to tell her the truth in that moment. She finished her bench-press and smirked, shaking her head. _Am I really going to do this?_

That night, Erik sat in his room with a cigar and scotch, unable to concentrate on his newspaper. Suddenly, the door opened. He set the paper down, surprised, genuinely not expecting Raven to show up. But then, Charles entered his room. He thought for a moment that it might be Raven, but Charles was still wearing the same clothes he'd seen him in earlier, and he gave no indication of not being himself. Erik felt sure he was looking at Charles.

"What brings you here so late?" Erik asked, puffing his cigar.

"Care for a game of chess?" asked Charles, who grabbed a small stool and scooted it up to the table so he could sit across from Erik.

"I suppose," Erik rose and grabbed another glass from the metal tray in his bookcase. "Scotch?"

Instead of responding, Charles erupted in laughter, cupping his hand over his mouth.

"What on Earth is so amusing?" Erik asked, looking over at him.

Still holding in more laugher, Charles's eyes flashed bright yellow for a moment.

Erik's eyes widened in shock, "Jesus Christ… Raven! You look just like him!"

"Shhh-hhh-hhh," she said, fighting her laugher, standing and walking over to him.

She placed a finger over his lips. "I wanted to give you your fantasy," she whispered. "Just enjoy it."

Erik stared at her – at Charles's face – in disbelief. He ran a hand over Charles's hair, still feeling uncomfortably surreal. "You…God, you even sound just like him."

Raven smiled. She could tell he was hesitant to get things started, but that he had wanted this for a long time. She placed her hands on the sides of his face and pulled him in for a passionate kiss. The whole situation was surreal for her, too, but she could already tell how badly Erik wanted it. She found it exhilarating to be helping him realize his ultimate fantasy.

The feeling of Charles's lips on his sent a wave of previously forbidden excitement through Erik's body. He gasped as he pulled out of the kiss to look at Charles's face again.

"Raven…this is insane." He shook his head and looked down for a moment.

"You don't have to call me that. Erik." She had guessed that hearing his name in her flawless copy of Charles's accent would make him unable to resist. She was right.

Erik grabbed her shoulders and pinned her against the bookshelf, kissing her passionately once again, allowing himself to get lost in the moment. The two of them moved toward the bed, with Raven removing her Charles-jacket and shirt, while Erik hastily undid the belt. As they lied down, he slipped his hand into her pants, unsure of what to expect.

"My God…you really transform completely, don't you?"

She looked at him and gave a bold little smirk. "Wouldn't be as convincing if I didn't. Haa-ahh…" She gasped at his touch.

"I take it that feels good," he said, sliding her pants off.

"Are you kidding? In high school I used to transform into a guy just to jack off," she said as she pulled off Erik's shirt. "Now, how about you stop talking to Raven and enjoy this," she said, leaning forward to kiss him.

Erik received the kiss but hesitated again, pausing to look "her" body over now that she was fully naked. He ran his hand along the side of Charles's abdomen down to the hip, feeling a small sting of reality at the thought that none of it would ever really happen.

Raven could detect some small amount of sadness in his face. She wrapped her arm around his back, pulling him closer, and said, "You have nothing to be ashamed of, Erik." It occurred to both of them that it sounded exactly like something Charles would say in a different context.

With that, he moved on top of her and deeply kissed her, moving down to kiss Charles's neck, then his waist. He looked up at Charles's face the same way he had on their first night together before he had pleasured Raven.

"Do it," she insisted.

He did with a gasp, embracing the surreal feeling washing over him as he pleasured a man for the first time.

"Oh god, Erik," Raven gasped, "I've wanted this so long." She thought it might be something he'd like to hear. Again, she was right. She would've been lying to say that seeing the guy she'd been sleeping with for nearly a month enjoying pleasuring a man wasn't pretty fucking weird, but she was still relishing watching him act out his fantasy. Plus, it helped that it felt as least as good as when she'd been herself.

Erik was no stranger to blow jobs, so he knew what usually felt good, but he was surprised at how different it was to be on the _giving_ end; his mouth was already getting tired. By the sounds Raven was making, though, he could tell he wasn't awful. In that moment, he was actually relieved that it wasn't really Charles there beneath him, and instead, someone he'd already intimately trusted. And he had to admit…he _was_ enjoying it.

Raven ran her hands through his hair as she moaned and gasped in pleasure. "Oh god, Erik," she said again, "I'm so close."

Hearing that phrase in Charles's voice nearly sent Erik over the edge. He paused and moved up to Raven's chest – Charles's chest – and lifted her to move her to a more accessible position, gave her a quick kiss, then continued with full enthusiasm and speed.

"Oh god, fuck, yes," Raven gasped out in Charles's voice just before she came, "Haaaaa-aaaah-ugh." She was a bit surprised that Erik had no qualms about swallowing, but there he was, smiling at her, like it didn't bother him at all.

Erik crawled up next to her as she let herself sink into a pillow, panting. He lied close, putting an arm around her chest.

"I told you it would be fun," she said, smiling. "Should I return the favor?" she asked, feeling his bulge pressing into her thigh.

He ran his hand through Charles's hair again and kissed her forehead. "How about you go back to being Raven so I can give you a proper fuck?"

"Are you sure?" she asked, her smile fading a bit.

Erik gave her another passionate kiss. "I'm sure," he whispered.

And just like that, her blue scales and auburn hair returned. She let out a sigh and smiled at Erik, who removed his pants and moved on top of her, running a hand up her thigh. After everything they'd already done, he didn't last long, but he made sure the next several minutes were more passionate and enthusiastic than ever, to thank her for the amazing night she'd given him.

Later, spent and sweaty with a cigar in his mouth, he glanced over at her. She was somewhere between smiling dreamily and actually dreaming. He removed his cigar, leaned over and kissed her forehead.

"Thank you," he said genuinely.

She smiled up at him. "Anytime."

He sighed and let out a tiny, breathy laugh. "How the hell did I end up with you as my closest friend?"

She laughed, too, sat up, and hugged him. She'd never felt more appreciated. Lying back down, she decided to toss some humor into the moment.

"Just don't let me hear that L-word come out of you," she said.

He scoffed in amusement. "Goodnight, Raven."

The next morning, Raven stepped out of Erik's shower and wrapped herself in a towel. She cracked the door so he could hear her from the bed.

"Do you think you're going to have any trouble keeping that from Charles?" she asked, praying the answer was going to be a firm "no."

"I'm not worried," he said, "I've kept those ridiculous thoughts from him this long, anyway."

"How exactly do you do that, again?" she asked, toothbrush in her mouth.

"I just find a way of pushing another, distracting thought to the front of my mind when I'm around him. It could be anything. An image of breasts, deciding what I want to eat, looking forward to my next cigar, you know. Just long enough to get myself thinking of something else. It's either worked so far, or he hasn't said anything," he shrugged. He had lied, though; he was somewhat worried about all these new images floating around in his head. It wasn't like Charles couldn't dig all the way to his sub-conscious if he wanted to.

"You getting in?" Raven asked, referring to the shower.

"No," he said, standing and grabbing his sweat clothes. "I'm going for a run."

Later, after his jog, he stopped at the kitchen for a quick bite, having successfully avoided Charles all morning. But then, as he headed for his room, ready for a shower, Charles suddenly approached him, looking angry. Erik immediately felt a wave of panic course through him. He tried to clear his head, but was afraid his racing heart would reveal his anxiety.

"Erik, a word," he said sternly as he passed him, heading down the hall to a lounge room.

Erik reluctantly followed, resolving that he could just bolt if everything blew up in his face, even though doing so would upset Raven.

Charles paced the room as he spoke. "Am I to understand," he began, "that while I've accepted you as an equal, a friend, and a person I can trust…"

Erik felt like he was sweating more now than during his jog. He tried to clear his mind and focus on what Charles was saying, even though he had a swelling fear of what was coming.

"Am I to understand," he repeated himself, "that you've been _sleeping_ with my _sister_?"

Erik blinked. _Is that what he's so angry about?_ He couldn't be sure if that was all Charles knew, but he figured he could play it like it was all that had happened.

"What's the big deal?" he shrugged, "We're enjoying each other's company."

"She's _eighteen_!" Charles snapped.

"And bloody well old enough to know what she wants!" Erik shouted back. "Christ, Charles, she's not a child. Do you think you can shield her from sex at that age? Or forever?" He grabbed a cigar from the room's coffee table and lit it at his lips.

Charles stared at him angrily and moved his finger up to his temple like he did when preparing to read someone's thoughts. "I want to know how this started," he said, matter-of-factly.

"You don't want to read my thoughts right now, Charles," Erik said, meaning to imply that Charles might be wise to avoid witnessing the image of him banging away at Raven.

Charles instantly reconsidered and withdrew his hand. "You're right. I don't," he said, and left in a haste.

Raven was in the kitchen having lunch with Hank, who still couldn't empathize with her newfound call to nudity or her "mutant pride." A very serious-looking Charles entered suddenly, and she thought he might join them.

"Raven, can I have a word with you in private?"

She gulped. "Uh, sure," she said, getting up to follow him out into the hall.

"I want to know how this started," he said in a stern but hushed voice. "Between you and Erik. I want to know if he took advantage of you in any way—"

"What? No! And how do you know about this, anyway? Did you read my mind?"

"No, I didn't," he said with a sigh.

"Then how? And why is this your business?"

"Raven, as always, I only have your best interests in mind, and as for how, a student told me he saw you go to Erik's room several nights within the past week. I read his mind to see what he saw. I didn't read yours or Erik's, and frankly, I'd rather _not_."

"Who told you?" She glanced back at the kitchen for a moment. "It was Hank, wasn't it? God, I knew he was jealous."

"Raven, just tell me how this started. I think when I find out that my oldest friend and little sister has been staying with a man more than twice her age, I have reason to be concerned."

"I started it," she said with a shrug. "I wanted to. He's the only person who's ever preferred me like this. The _real_ me."

"Is _that_ why you've been going around like this all the time now?"

She considered the tone of his question and gave a slight scoff. "That's what this is really about, isn't it? You're still not comfortable seeing me like this. Even after all these years."

"Raven, that's not what this is about—"

"Goddamnit, Charles," she shook her head. "You just can't understand. You'll never understand! You pick up girls all the time. You can't imagine what it's like...to know that if you show your true self to someone, they'll most likely reject you? That you have to lie just so someone will think you're pretty? Can you even empathize with that?"

"Raven! Listen! I want to make sure Erik isn't taking advantage of you by playing off of that same vulnerability you're talking about. It's fine for him to be attracted to you, but to carry on like this? Does that make it appropriate? Does that give him sound reason to woo a teenage girl?"

"Don't talk to me like I'm a child. I'm not in love with him or some bullshit like that. And I'm allowed to enjoy myself."

"Can you at least see why I'm concerned?"

She sighed. "Yeah. But you don't have to be. Erik has given me more self-confidence and courage than I thought I'd ever have. He's doing the opposite of taking advantage. I feel like my whole outlook on life has changed. I feel…_beautiful_. In _my_ skin," she smiled, "Mutant and proud."

Charles smiled back, satisfied, and touched her shoulder. "Thank you, Raven." He turned to leave, and added, "This is why I never need to read your mind!"

After he'd gone, Raven hurried over to Erik's room, wondering if Charles had confronted him as well. When she stepped inside, his bathroom door was closed with the light on, and she thought she'd try again later, but then he stepped out with a towel around his waist. She closed the door behind her.

"That was close…" she said.

"Tell me about it."

"I don't think he'll bother us again, though. And it sounded like he won't be reading our minds anytime soon," she said, trying to put a positive spin on the encounter.

The next few days were busy in the mansion, so later that week, Raven was craving another rendezvous with Erik, but she could still feel some slight tension between them now that their activities weren't a secret. She'd been trying to come up with something new and exciting that would help break the ice and amp up the sexy again. Fortunately, though, an encounter with Hank had given her an idea. (She was still angry at Hank for various reasons, but still wandered through his lab on occasion out of boredom and curiosity.)

So, that evening, she headed for Erik's room. It was earlier than usual, but most of the house was empty, giving her the perfect opportunity. Since it had been a while, she knocked instead of just peeking in. She heard the rustling of paper and then a shirtless Erik opened the door.

"Hello there," he said, stepping aside to let her in.

"You read a lot, don't you?" she asked awkwardly, trying to fill the silence.

"I suppose I do. I prefer to stay informed."

"I have a surprise for you," she said, smiling mischievously.

"Oh? The nice kind?" he asked, quoting her from that first night.

"I hope so," she said. "Close your eyes."

He raised a brow as if to say "really?" She could tell he thought it was a childish request.

"Come on, just do it!"

He shook his head and obeyed.

"Alright," came Charles's voice, "Ta-da!"

"What the fuck is that?" Erik said upon opening his eyes, observing the strange suit she'd morphed into Charles wearing.

"I saw Hank working on them earlier. They're going to be really high-tech for fighting and stuff. I thought you might like a preview of what Charles will look like in his," she said, turning so he could see how form-fitting the suit was.

Erik just laughed, shaking his head. "We're all going to be dressed like that?" He rubbed his temples.

"You don't like the surprise, do you?" she said, smile fading, sounding defeated.

He quickly moved closer to her. "I didn't say that," he said, grabbing Charles's ass with both hands in a loud clap against the smooth suit, pulling their bodies closer together.

She laughed with delight. "You know…we could even go all the way tonight. If you wanted," she offered, smiling up at him.

Erik withdrew his grasp. "I've actually never been interested in doing that," he said, clearly referring to anal sex. "With anyone, really. Male or female. It doesn't appeal to me at all, and I hope you won't press the issue." His tone was stern but not harsh.

"Oh," came her response. "Well, what should we do this time?" she asked happily, trying to hint that they could be more adventurous than the first time she looked like Charles.

Then, he did something she wasn't expecting. Instead of responding, he stared into Charles's eyes for a moment, embraced her, and held her against his chest. At first, she was confused, not knowing what to say or do. He'd never behaved that way before; there had been small romantic moments between them, but no sudden, wordless hugs. She could feel his breath on top of her head. Then, something occurred to her: _Is he __**in love**__ with Charles? _The thought shocked her at first, and for a moment, she felt very uncomfortable. But, after further consideration, she realized how difficult it would be for a man to love another man and not be able to act upon it. She was suddenly flooded with so much pity for Erik she thought she might cry, and wrapped her arms around his back, holding him tight.

Pulling out of the hug, he kissed her forehead. "You've been so generous, Raven."

She still couldn't be sure of the true meaning behind that hug, but she didn't want to turn it into a mushy, soul-searching moment.

"What can I say?" She kissed him. "I'm a charitable person."

He smiled, amused, and kissed her. He removed his arms from her abdomen, and began unbuckling his belt, stepping out of his pants as they fell to the floor.

"Care to prove it?" he asked, his eyes bold, staring straight into hers.

She smirked back at him, kneeling on command. "Should I stay in the suit?"

"Why not?" he said, cocking an eyebrow.

She smiled wickedly and moved closer. It was the first time she'd ever given him oral – the first time he'd requested it – and she loved that her surprise had lead to trying something new.

As for Erik, seeing Charles in a skin-tight suit, kneeling and sucking him off like his dick contained a special substance that would make mutants and humans get a long happily forever – _if only_ – was both insane and insanely hot, to the point that he wasn't sure how long he would actually last. His instincts told him to let his eyelids drop and enjoy the feeling, but he just couldn't get enough of that sight, and kept re-opening them. To steady himself, he reached over and let his hand rest on a bedpost.

"Good fucking lord, Raven, that's…that's, god, that's it…"

She looked up at him playfully, and keeping a hand on him, freed her mouth to speak. "I told you, you don't have to call me that. What do you _really_ want to call me, Erik?" She resumed pleasuring him, her eyes still open.

He didn't respond, instead running a hand through Charles's hair.

Meanwhile, the real Charles had headed for the newly relocated and reconstructed Cerebro. Hank had just finished repairing it and had requested that Charles give it a test drive to make sure it still functioned properly. On the way out the door, Moira spotted him.

"Ah, off to search the globe? This late?"

"It's more of just a test," he said. "Care to join me?"

"Sure!" she said, following him out the door.

Whenever he used Cerebro, it always began by scanning the area closest to him. So, when the machine started up and he got brief images of each of the mutants in his home, he was glad to see that it appeared to be working normally. Quick, half-second glimpses of someone jogging, reading, or working flashed through his mind. Suddenly, one of the images was of Erik clearly having sex with someone. Disgusted, he was going to quickly move his mind away from the area of his house, when something caught his "eye," and reluctantly, he re-focused his attention on Erik. His partner was…male. Looking more closely, he gasped as he recognized himself giving Erik oral sex!

Noting the look of pain and disgust on Charles's face, Moira called out, "Is everything okay, Professor?"

"It's fine – _fine_ – just give me a second."

_Something clearly must be wrong with Cerebro, _he thought. _It is displaying an event that has not taken place. _Just as the thought occurred to him, though, it became very apparent that he was, indeed, observing two mutants, and with a brief tap into Raven's mind, he confirmed what he feared was actually happening.

Bewildered and mortified, he tore himself away from the metal helmet, taking a few steps and nearly collapsing forward as he steadied himself on the railing.

"Charles!" Moira said, concerned, approaching him.

"I'm fine, Moira, I've just," unable to calm his gut reaction, he vomited on the floor. "I've just witnessed something very terrible."

At his side, Moira placed a hand on his shoulder. "Is it the Russians?" she gasped. "Has war already begun?"

"No, no," he said, taking a breath and standing up straight. "That's not the nature of this machine. I really can't discuss what I saw, I'm sorry. I think it would be best if you left."

"But Charles, you're ill. Let me help you."

"I assure you, I'll be fine. Though I suppose I could do with a mint, if you happen to have one," he tried smiling to lighten the mood, but she wasn't convinced. Then again, neither was he.

"Here," she said, finding an Altoid in her pocket.

"Ah, thank you."

"I'll step out, but please don't hesitate to let me know if something's wrong."

After she'd gone, he stood collecting his thoughts. _What the fuck did I just witness? Why would she...? Why would he…? _It was too much to comprehend; he couldn't make sense of it. Then, something occurred to him. _Perhaps they knew I was coming to Cerebro and they're playing a trick on me! Revenge for my intrusion!_ He had to admit, the thought calmed him. It was a pretty extreme trick, certainly, but it made more sense than anything else he had come up with. But then, an unsettling thought crept over him: the only way to be sure of what was going on would be to "look" again. He gulped, knowing there was no way he could walk back into the mansion without an answer. He stepped back into Cerebro, cringing at the thought of what he'd see next. When he again had a clear image of what was happening in Erik's bedroom, he took a breath and let the scene play out.

"Oh god," Erik gasped, "that's it…"

Raven increased her speed, knowing he was close.

"Oh fuck me," he gasped again, "Fuck! Charles!" he cried, finally saying his name as he finished.

Watching, the actual Charles felt his stomach churning again, in utter disbelief of what he was seeing. He was ready to tear himself away from Cerebro, but the next thing he saw surprised him.

Panting, Erik placed his hand on Raven's arm, encouraging her to stand. As she did, he met her lips with a passionate kiss and embraced her as he had before.

Breaking his promise, Charles read both of their minds within the hug and was stunned at what he found. Both of them had clearly sexually enjoyed the activity; that much was obvious. He could see clearly now that this was their genuine choice and not some trick or illusion. For Erik, it was a moment of satisfaction and serenity. He felt immense happiness over what had just occurred. There was still an underlying guilt about the scenario being taboo and forbidden in reality, but Charles could tell Erik was pushing those thoughts away in favor of enjoying the moment. Raven's thoughts were happy as well, and he could sense how appreciated she felt, and while she admired and adored Erik, she too still felt a hint of pity for him.

"Why don't we lie down?" Raven suggested, still hugging Erik.

He pulled back to look down at her, and stroked her face. Charles's face. "Come back to me," he said.

She gave a small smile, kissed him, and let herself un-transform within the kiss. When she pulled away, smiling, she was Raven again. Erik smiled back and kissed her forehead.

Charles had seen enough, and disconnected from Cerebro, not sure what to think. He'd been tempted to probe Erik's mind further, to discover the true nature of his attraction to him, but he felt it would be too invasive of his privacy. Not to mention, he wasn't sure he really wanted to know. _Maybe I should be flattered,_ he reasoned half-heartedly. _Even my male friend has a crush on me!_ He rolled his eyes at his internal sarcasm. _And maybe I should be glad I didn't see them together with Raven intact…though I'm not sure which image would be more scarring. _He rubbed his temples. He couldn't help re-examining his previous interactions with Erik in a whole new light. When he'd helped him discover his ability to rotate the satellite dish… He figured that moment probably meant more to Erik than it did for him. Unsure of how to proceed with this new knowledge, he headed inside and poured himself a stiff drink.

Back in Erik's room, the two of them were sitting in bed, Erik back in his snug black boxers, a scotch in his hand.

"You must be thinking it's your turn," he said, leaning over and kissing her.

"Mmm, not necessarily," she smiled and caressed his cheek. "I enjoyed it, too."

There was a silent moment between them as they looked into each other's eyes.

"Have I told you," he started, setting his scotch on his bedside table, "that you have the most gorgeous eyes I've ever seen?"

She smiled, surprised at his compliment.

"So bright," he continued, "like looking at the sun."

She laughed a little. "Thank you," she said. "You seem different tonight."

"Raven, I have to tell you something," he said, taking a sip of his drink and returning it to the stand.

His tone made her nervous. "What is it?"

"The thing is, Charles and I don't see eye-to-eye on lots of things. Lots of the things he's doing…I don't think they're going to work. There may come a time when we part ways – when we'll no longer work together."

"You mean…you'll leave," she said.

"Yes."

She considered the information, wondering if that was the reason he kept hugging her. She was trying to figure out what to say when he spoke again.

"I want you to think about coming with me," he said.

Raven hadn't guessed he would say something like that. She scooted closer to him and kissed him, embracing him again.

"I'll come with you," she whispered.

He returned the hug. "Just think about it," he said. "I know it would be hard for you to leave him."

"It would be hard to see you go," she replied. She kissed him again and the two of them lied there silently for a few minutes. After a while, she spoke again.

"Can I ask you something?"

He nodded.

"Have you been attracted to other men besides Charles?"

He shifted his weight so he was better facing her. "Yes," he responded. "There was another boy in Auschwitz, but that's not something I talk about. And one in college. But neither of them ever knew…" He glanced at her face. "Only you know."

She nodded, silently processing what he'd said. If none of them had known, then her illusion of Charles was the only man he'd actually been with. _It really was his ultimate fantasy…_ she thought.

"Of course," he continued, "most of the time, it's women," he smirked. "There's been no shortage of women."

"I'm sure," she said in mock-annoyance.

"It seems like every now and then I just meet a man I can't get out of my head. I think it won't happen again, but someone like Charles comes along…literally saves my life," he said, shaking his head a little. "I used to think I was fucked in the head. That maybe something the Nazis did to me made me this way."

Raven looked concerned, and was about to react to that alarming notion, but Erik continued.

"But then I realized it's just who I am. Just like my mutation isn't something someone did to me; it's part of me, it's always been there… But for a long time, I did think I was the only one, in both regards."

Raven touched his arm affectionately. "I don't want you to feel alone anymore."

"I've never talked about this," he admitted with a small puff of a laugh.

"Thank you for telling me," she said.

"Thanks for not bailing when I told you," he said, referring to his reveal of his crush on Charles. "I was sure you would."

"Erik," she shook her head slightly in sincerity, "I'm _so glad_ I could do that for you… I'm so glad I know you." She touched his cheek.

He leaned in and kissed her, and after a while, the two of them drifted off to sleep.

The next day, Erik and Charles had to travel into the city with Moira. Charles had resolved to keep a professional demeanor, and was actually a little curious to see if the way Erik behaved toward him would reveal anything he would've missed before having discovered his secret.

The whole day was uncomfortable for both of them. Erik felt a slight panic every time he looked at Charles's face, as imagines of the things he'd done with Raven-Charles flashed through his mind. Charles could sense his discomfort, but was more distracted by his own. In previous outings, he'd felt very at ease with Erik, as if they were brothers. Now, though, he couldn't shake the tension. The stress was taking so much out of him, he wasn't sure if he'd be able to resist reading Erik's mind.

That night, they both returned home weary. As they stepped into the house, Charles considered whether or not he should suggest a game of chess. In the past, he wouldn't have given it a second thought, but now, he wasn't sure if spending more time with Erik was an appealing idea. _Still, it would be nice to sit down to a scotch and a game, _he thought. _And maybe it will ease the tension between us._

"Care for some Chess?" he offered friendlily.

"Why not?" Erik responded, surprised and relieved by the offer.

They headed to the lounge and enjoyed cigars and drinks while they played. After several drinks and some laughs, they both felt they were back in their comfort zone. Then, as Charles was leaning over the board, reaching to move his piece, something came over Erik. He found himself studying Charles's hand, glancing up his arm, looking over his tired face, his blue eyes, his lips… He found himself lingering on his lips. He'd genuinely never been compelled to behave that way before – he'd had his attractions, but he'd never just sat down and admired another man. And he had absolutely never been distracted by a man's lips. He had to snap himself out of it when Charles looked up at him, proud of his move.

"Sorry," he said, "I think the scotch caught up with me. Maybe we can finish this game another night?"

"Sure," Charles yawned. It occurred to him that it was unlike Erik to end a game so abruptly, but he was almost too tired and drunk to care. "I'm ready to retire, myself."

The two of them headed for their rooms. After Charles had washed up, he had an idea. He knew that if he read Erik's mind while he was sleeping, it would be easier to prevent Erik from knowing it had happened. His mind-reading would push Erik's thoughts in certain directions, but for him, it would be nothing more than a dream. He was simply too curious and confused not to try. He waited until he could tell for sure that Erik was in deep sleep, and quietly crept to his room. There, he discovered the door knob locked, and decided that he'd have to do it from another location. He chose an empty room directly above Erik's on the next floor, sat on the bed, took a breath, and concentrated. He probed Erik's mind, pushing it in the direction of himself, then in the direction of Erik's first attraction to him.

Charles was surprised to find images of their first meeting flooding his mind, this time, from Erik's perspective. There he'd been, underwater, using all his strength for an impossible task, when another man's arms had suddenly embraced him from behind. When he'd heard Charles's voice in his mind, he'd been confused, but he could tell Charles was trying to help him. Next, when they'd come up for air and Erik learned that he was not alone in being a mutant, Charles felt how overwhelmingly profound and touching that knowledge had been for Erik, having gone his whole life thinking otherwise. When he'd spoken the words, "You're not alone, Erik," to him, it had changed his whole world. He could've kissed Charles in that moment, he was so happy. But it wasn't really out of genuine sexual attraction…yet. His brain jumped to another moment, of the two of them playing Chess, laughing, and Erik thinking he hadn't had such a good friend in a long time. A very brief moment from the time they'd recruited Angel in her strip club came up next, with the two of them sitting in the bed together, where Erik had realized he'd rather share the bed with Charles than one of the strippers. Then, there was the moment when Charles refused to shoot Erik in the head and called him a friend. Hearing that word had meant a lot to Erik; Charles would have never guessed. Several more memories of the two of them passed by, each with the same undertone: Erik felt a connection to Charles he hadn't felt to another person in a long time. Then, suddenly, an image of the two of them kissing emerged, and he quickly pushed it away. Since it was clearly a genuine memory and not a dream, he knew it must have been him with Raven. But the next moment was even more surprising: Raven and Erik were standing in his room, arguing. She was pressuring him to tell her something – to tell him who she should turn into. He saw the moment Erik had admitted Charles was his fantasy, and felt the deep shame and bitterness that had accompanied saying it aloud. Next, Erik and Raven were lying in bed together, and she was saying something. "I'm so glad I could do that for you, Erik…" she had said, touching his arm. Charles felt he'd seen enough, and gently exited Erik's mind, letting him resume dreamless deep sleep.

He came away from the encounter with no regrets. Understanding why Erik felt that way about him had certainly put his mind at ease. Like Raven, he felt a swell of pity for Erik, whose life had seemingly been one hardship after another. He even felt a little sorry he wouldn't ever be able to feel the way Erik did, but he resolved to continue being his best friend. _The last thing this man needs,_ he thought, _is to lose another friend. _While he was still very uncomfortable with what Erik and Raven had done together, he could now at least clearly grasp the reasons behind it, and he could admit that he was glad Raven had brought some comfort to Erik in a way he couldn't._ I will never give up on my friendship with Erik, _he promised himself as he drifted off to sleep that night.

The next morning, Erik awoke to knocking on his door. He could vaguely remember dreaming about Charles, which made him groan in annoyance as he stood. He found Raven at the door.

"I never saw you yesterday when you got back," she said, entering. "I tried to come by last night, but your door was locked."

"I didn't want to be bothered," he said.

"Oh. Well, I get it," she said. "So, how did it go yesterday?"

"Fine," he said.

"That's good," she said. "I hoped it wouldn't be too different - being around him all day."

"Look, Raven," he said with a sigh, "I don't think you and I can continue this."

"What?" she asked, somewhat shocked. "What do you mean? You don't want to see me anymore?"

"No, I don't mean _you_. I mean this ridiculous thing we've done. You turning into Charles. It has to stop. It's wrong."

"You seemed to enjoy it at the time," she said with a little scoff.

"Godamnit, you talked me into it!" he said, raising his voice. "It's your fault," he pointed at her. "Your stupid idea. Disgusting idea. I should've never agreed to it."

"Erik, why are you saying this?" she could feel tears forming in her eyes. "The other night, everything was fine…"

"It wasn't meant to come true," he said. "They were just thoughts. But now? Now that I've experienced it? I can't stop thinking about him, Raven. It's a huge distraction. It was a huge mistake to agree to that with you. I don't know what I was thinking."

"It's okay to have a crush on someone," she offered, not sure what else to say. "I just wanted to be your outlet. I thought I was helping…"

"Well, it ends now!" he shouted.

Hurt by his tone, she instinctively cupped a hand over her mouth, her eyes tearing up.

"Get the fuck out," he said, clearly annoyed by her display of weakness.

She ran from his room crying and nearly bumped into Charles in the hallway.

"Raven!" he said, concerned. "What is it?"

At first, she thought she'd continue to her room, but instantly realized she didn't want to be alone and let herself collapse onto him.

"He got mad at me," she sobbed.

Charles put an arm around her, patting her back. "Tell me what happened."

"He just…got mad at something I did," she said. "He yelled at me."

"This is what I've been afraid of, Raven. I can't stand to see you get hurt."

She pulled back to wipe her eyes. "I know," she said. "He's never acted like this before."

"Why don't we have a seat?" Charles suggested, and the two of them rested on a nearby couch, his arm around Raven, who had gone back to the blond version of herself for the first time in weeks.

Charles wouldn't break his promise to Raven again, so he probed Erik's mind, searching his thoughts to see what had made him so angry. He wasn't surprised he'd snapped at Raven, as his mind was hot mix of conflicting thoughts and furiousness directed mostly at himself…but that he had tried to pin onto Raven. Charles didn't have to probe longer to ascertain what had occurred between them.

"I'm going to go talk to him," he said gently to Raven, leaving her on the sofa.

"No! Please don't!" she called to him.

"Raven, I'm sorry, but if someone hurts you this much, it's my business," his voice was still gentle but unrelenting.

She sunk into the couch, defeated, and said nothing.

When Charles entered Erik's room, he saw him in his gray sweatpants, putting on the matching sweater.

"Erik, what on Earth has happened?" he asked.

"Relax, Charles, my temper just got out of hand."

"You've genuinely hurt her," Charles said angrily. "I value our friendship, but I will not tolerate you throwing my sister aside like a piece of garbage. Especially not after how the two of you have carried on. That's just cruel, Erik. Just days ago she was speaking of you like her closest friend."

"She means a lot to me, Charles. I'll apologize to her later," he said. "You have my word. But I've got to go clear my head."

Charles nodded and Erik headed out for a jog. Charles felt he had handled the situation well, and while he was still angry at Erik, he knew he was a complex man. He went to return to Raven's side, but found an empty sofa. He headed up to her room, where he found her sitting on her bed, no longer crying, but still in her old blond disguise.

"Raven," he said softly. "Are you alright?"

"I'll be fine," she said. "I feel stupid for letting myself get so comfortable with him. I think you were right about the age difference… What did he say to you?"

Charles sat on the bed next to her and placed a hand on her back. "He regrets it, but you need to hear that from him. I believe you will."

She scoffed through a clogged nose.

"Raven," Charles began again, "I'm sorry if I was part of the reason you didn't feel comfortable in your real skin. I know I've been dismissive of your insecurities in the past, and I shouldn't have been. I saw you like this so much, I let myself forget it wasn't the real you."

Raven slightly smiled and hugged him. Due to her relationship with Erik, it had been a while since she felt close to Charles. She was glad he was still there for her.

Later that evening, Raven was in her room when there was a knock on the door. Before answering, she quickly morphed back into her clothed, blond self, and then found Erik at the door. She said nothing upon seeing him, simply crossing her arms.

"Raven…" he said, surprised at her appearance. "What's this about?" He gestured at all of her.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"May I?"

She stepped aside to let him in, and he closed the door behind him.

"I need to apologize for the way I spoke to you earlier. I had no right to treat you that way."

Her arms were still crossed. "Did Charles tell you to say that?"

"No. Listen, Raven," he stepped closer to her. "I am truly sorry." He reached out to touch a lock of her blond hair. "Can't I see those beautiful eyes of yours?"

"No," she said coldly, swatting his hand away. There was a silent moment, and she spoke again. "Don't you get it, Erik? You broke my heart this morning. The way you exploded at me…blamed me, called me stupid…" a tear rolled down her cheek. "I don't know how to trust you again."

"I got scared," he admitted softly after a moment. "Scared of the way I was feeling…about Charles…about _you_. It's been a very long time since I cared about someone so much."

"Me too," she replied. "I let myself care about you, feel comfortable with you."

"I'm sorry…" he said, shaking his head slightly.

"Me too," she said again, coldly this time.

"I'm so sorry I hurt you, Raven," he said, making eye-contact. "I don't know what else to say."

"Well," she said, sitting in her chair, "Thanks for saying so." Her tone made the words feel empty. She looked down.

Erik opened the door to go. "You really do mean a lot to me," he offered, closing it behind him.

Raven cried herself to sleep that night. The next morning, she awoke starving, probably due to not having eaten much the day before. She headed to the kitchen for breakfast. While she was eating, Charles suddenly appeared looking anxious.

"Want some cereal?" she asked.

"Raven, what happened?" he asked, concerned.

"What do you mean?"

"Why is Erik leaving?"

Her eyes widened as she stood. "He's leaving?"

"You don't know why?"

"I... I'm not sure. He apologized to me last night…but I… I just didn't know if I could believe him."

"We don't have much time," Charles said. "I'll get to the bottom of this."

With that, he placed a finger on his temple and read Erik's thoughts.

"His apology was sincere," he said, "He cares about you a great deal, but…he fears he's lost you. He believes it's best for him to leave without further damage."

Upon hearing that, Raven pushed her chair out of the way and dashed for the door.

"He's in the drive!" Charles called to her, following with a brisk walk.

As she exited the mansion, she turned the corner and saw Erik loading a final bag into the trunk of a black car.

"Wait! Erik! Please!" she called to him.

He turned just in time to see her return to her blue skin as she ran.

"Erik!" she said, panting as she caught up to him, grasping his arms. "Please don't go. Don't leave."

"Raven," he said softly, wiping the wetness from her cheek, "You deserve better than me."

"I love you," she blurted out. "I know I promised not to say it, but it's true. I love you!"

He swallowed. "I'm not the man you think I am," he said in a choked whisper.

"Please…" she said again, her lip quivering. "This isn't what I wanted..."

_Erik, don't leave her, _came Charles's voice, suddenly inside his head. He looked around and noticed him standing near the side of the house, watching them.

"Please stay, Erik. We need you," Charles said aloud.

Raven and Erik had both turned to look at him, then turned back to each other. He placed his hands on the back of her head and kissed her. Charles realized it was the first time he'd seen them kiss, and was struck by their passion and how much they clearly meant to each other. On the one hand, there was Raven, who'd never been kissed in her true skin before meeting Erik. On the other, there was Erik, who'd gone most of his life feeling totally alone with no significant personal connections in years. Charles found himself swallowing a lump in his throat as well.

"Want to help me carry these bags back inside?" Erik said to Raven, touching her hair.

A wide smile spread across her face, and she laughed in happiness and relief. She jumped up to hug him, and he held her there, her feet off the ground.

Charles gave a small, genuine smile and went back inside.

Raven and Erik removed his bags from the trunk and carried them back to his room, where the two of them embraced again.

Later that night, they lied in bed, Raven with her head on her arms as Erik ran his finger tips across her back, eliciting sighs of delight from her.

"I love these patterns on your skin," he said, his finger tips grazing the scales near her hip.

"Hmmm," she murmured in acknowledgement and slight amusement. "I used to hate them. I thought they were ugly, like a disease."

"No," he said firmly, letting the full palm of his hand caress the textured skin. "You're a work of art. Meant to be admired."

She twisted her head around, resting the opposite cheek against her forearm so she could look at him, and gave a flattered, bashful smile. She knew Erik realized that he was the first person to ever say that to her.

He ran his hand up her spine and let it rest on the back of her neck, sighing and looking at her as if he was silently saying "thank you" for asking him to stay.

"Erik…" she began, "Can you promise me you'll never leave without me?"

He moved his hand down to the small of her back, resting it there. "I'm not really a fan of that word," he said, scooting his face closer to hers. "I'm not certain anyone can actually promise anything… But I can tell you this: as long as you want to be by my side, you'll have a place there."

She leaned in and kissed him, and they fell asleep with his arm still draped across her.


	2. Divisions

**Chapter 2: Divisions**

_Note: This chapter introduces an original character. She was originally a plot device, but I liked her enough to keep her around. I hope you'll give her a chance!_

Eventually, the X-Men were called to their first-ever battle, after which the time came for Raven to make her choice to go with Erik instead of staying at home with Charles. (As shown in movie.)

That same night, Erik and Raven finally had some alone-time at their temporary new home, Azazel's mansion.

"That bed sure looks lonely," Raven said playfully as she entered Erik's bedroom.

Erik gave a small smile and scooted over so that half of the bed was free. She slid under the covers beside him, yawning.

"I'm exhausted, too," he said.

"What an insane day…"

There was a pause as he looked down and brushed a piece of lint off of the sheet.

"I don't think…" he said softly, still looking down, "I don't know that I can ever forgive myself. For what happened to Charles. What I did to Charles."

"It was an accident," she said, touching his shoulder.

"It could cause a permanent injury," he said, still not looking at her.

"Oh, I don't think so," she said, trying to stay optimistic. "He seemed like he'd be alright. He was talking to us and everything."

"Raven, I removed the bullet. I saw the entry. It hit his _spine_," he said, this time looking up to express the severity of his point.

Her eyes widened. "You mean…you think Charles could be paralyzed?"

"More likely than not, yes." He reached over to his nightstand for a cigar.

Raven looked around, not sure what to say. She literally had not considered that Charles wouldn't walk again after the bullet hit him. She felt tears swell in her eyes at the thought.

"You can be angry at me," he said, talking over his cigar, which he then puffed and held, "I deserve it. And I'm twice as angry at myself. And fucking _Moira_, pointing a gun at me knowing full-well my abilities… _And_ at Charles. If he would've just stood back..."

"That's not like him," she said factually, a single tear rolling down her cheek.

"No, I guess it's not," he said. He looked over at her and saw the tear. "I won't ask you to forgive something I cannot forgive myself."

She looked over at him. "Erik, it _was_ an accident. I'll call the mansion tomorrow to find out how he's doing," she said, and moved over to him so she could rest her head on his chest. "For all we know, he's going to be fine."

He kissed the top of her head and embraced her. "Spending more time with me will rob you of that optimism, I'm afraid."

She said nothing, though she had a feeling he was probably right.

"But I'm very glad you came with me, Raven," he said.

The next day, Raven woke up early and decided to take advantage of being up before Erik. She snuck out of the bedroom and headed down the hall to the nearest telephone. Sitting in a chair at the phone desk, she quickly dialed the number of her former home, her heart pounding.

"Hello?" came a male voice on the phone. It wasn't Charles.

"Hi, it's Raven. Who am I speaking to?"

"Alex."

"Oh, hey, Alex. Um, I can't talk to Charles, can I?"

"No, he's still at the hospital. I think they said he'll be back tomorrow, though."

"Oh. I just wanted to find out if he was ok. After what happened on the beach."

"Well, we have a number to call the hospital, if you just want to talk to him."

"You can't tell me if he's okay?"

"I just thought he should tell you… The thing is, well…"

"Alex! Just tell me!"

"Hank is building him a wheelchair."

"Oh…oh my god. Do you mean a permanent one?"

"Yeah. They're pretty sure it's permanent. He's going to have a temporary wheelchair from the hospital until Hank is done with the better one."

"Oh my god…"

"Yeah. He said he couldn't feel his legs when we helped him on the beach, so we had a pretty bad feeling."

She sniffed. "Um, okay, thanks for explaining. Can I get that hospital number?"

Alex provided the number, but as she hung up, she was too stunned to dial anyone else. She held her head in her hands and wept in disbelief of the news. She didn't notice Erik arrive at the doorway.

Seeing her crying by the phone, he knew the result he suspected was true. He leaned against the door frame, letting her have her moment.

Suddenly, she noticed him there out of the corner of her eye. She looked over at him sadly, wiping her eyes.

"Hank is making a wheelchair," she blurted out, her voice cracking. "I'm so sorry," she added, shaking her head.

He looked at her and sighed, not sure what to say. "It's a cruel world," he offered, looking down.

She sprang from the desk, wrapping her arms around him and pressing her cheek to his chest, which he hadn't expected her to do. He stroked her back.

"I'm sorry, Raven," he whispered, his eyes moist.

"I just kept hoping he'd be okay, and you'd be able to forgive yourself," she said.

"Don't cry for _me_, Raven," he said softly, "It's certainly not the first unforgiveable thing I've done."

There was a brief silence between them, as he stroked her back and she cried onto his sleeve.

"I can't imagine him in a wheelchair," she said softly.

Raven was unable to reach Charles at the hospital, and decided to just wait until he was home the next day to call him. She gathered her courage and sat down, swallowing a nervous lump in her throat as she dialed.

"Hello?" came his voice. He sounded so normal, though possibly tired.

"Charles? It's Raven."

"Hey there," he said. "I guess you heard the news about me."

She was already crying, despite her better efforts. "I called yesterday and Alex told me what happened… I'm so sorry."

He could hear the catches and shakiness in her voice. "Hey, I'm alright…" he said, trying to comfort her. "I'll be alright."

"I'm so sorry this happened to you. I don't know what else to say. I can't believe it."

"I'm sorry, too, but all I can do now is focus on the future. My life isn't over. I'm still going to be a professor, and I'm still going to help mutants," he said, considering that he might be trying to convince himself as much as her.

"It's so good to hear your voice," she said. "I miss you."

"I miss you, too," he said, softly. "I feel it might be a great while before we see each other again. I hope Erik is looking after you and treating you with respect."

"He is…" she hesitated, having been undecided on what to say if Charles mentioned Erik. "You know, he said he might never forgive himself. He feels so terrible about what happened."

There was a pause in the conversation as Charles gathered his thoughts.

"An accident that could've been avoided is still an accident," he finally said. "I _am_ angry at Erik for the way he behaved, but I'm not going to hold this against him forever. I have to move forward, like I said."

Another pause.

"I wish I could be there for you. The way you were always there for me…" Raven said.

"I'm glad you called," he responded. "Please don't ever stop considering me your brother," he said in a firm whisper.

"I won't," she whispered back, sincerely.

"And you can tell Erik that I'll never stop considering him a friend."

She smiled, surprised to hear him say that. "I _will_ tell him," she said.

After her conversation with Charles, she found Erik in his bedroom getting dressed.

"I talked to Charles," she said.

He looked up at her, but said nothing, waiting for her to continue.

"He sounds good. As good as anyone could, I guess."

Erik looked down at his waist as he put on his belt, still not saying anything. Raven moved closer to him.

"He said you should always consider him a friend."

At that he looked up at her again, slightly surprised.

"Charles is a genuinely nice person, isn't he," he said, his tone more of a statement than a question.

Raven nodded with a small smile.

"I wish there were more like him in the world," Erik said, appearing to let his mind wander for a moment. He then resumed getting dressed.

"Where are you going?" she asked, noticing what he was wearing.

"My dear, _we_ are going to make a new friend."

That day, they recruited Emma Frost to Erik's cause. Since Emma now had nowhere to live, they gave her a bedroom at the mansion, and Raven was already growing uncomfortable with the way she saw her looking at Erik. She couldn't tell if Erik was also interested in Emma in that way – he had decided to recruit her, after all – so she decided to just not say anything about it.

Later that night, though, Raven was heading to Erik's room, when she realized that Emma was already knocking on the door. She hung back in the darkness of the hallway, waiting to see what would unfold.

"Oh, hello Emma," he said when he answered the door, partially closing his robe to hide his boxers. "Are you settled in?"

She smiled. "Oh, yes, it's all very cozy," she ran a hand down his bare arm, clearly flirting, "I just wanted to thank you."

"No problem," he said. "I figured a strong woman like yourself would be a valuable addition to our team."

"You know," she began again, coyly, "I got pretty lonely in that cell…"

Catching on and looking her over, Erik raised an eyebrow, seemingly interested. "Oh?"

"I was just thinking," Emma said, "You must get tired of banging that blue chick."

That was all the cue Raven needed. She immediately morphed into an identical Emma.

"Why on Earth would he ever get tired?" said Raven, coming up behind Emma, who was clearly surprised at hearing her own voice.

Erik gave a wicked little smile at Raven as she stepped up next to him and rested herself against his arm, her hand on his shoulder. She smiled at Emma, who looked vaguely pissed.

Raven's smile grew and she laughed out loud, pleased with herself. She looked at Erik, who couldn't help but laugh with her. Emma rolled her eyes and left, and the two of them closed his door, still laughing.

Raven fell into Erik, both of them still shaking with giggles.

"Very clever," he said, looking at her.

"I can…stay like this, if you want," she said mischievously.

He glanced down at Emma's enormous breasts, considering the offer.

"What do _you_ want?" he asked, looking back into her eyes.

"I want you to know you can be as adventurous as you want with me," she said seductively.

He stared into her eyes for a second, then grasped her shoulders and forcefully but carefully pushed her up against the wall, kissed her, kissed her neck, and tugged at the white bra, which she then let disappear.

"That's it…" she breathed, eyes closed, sliding his robe off and letting it drop.

He grabbed her thigh, encouraging her to put her legs around his waist, which she did, with him still holding her against the wall.

"Should these go, too?" she asked, looking down at her white panties.

Instead of responding out loud, he resumed enthusiastically kissing her, and managed to yank his boxers off with one hand while still supporting her.

Both naked, he suddenly hesitated, looking into her eyes.

"What are you waiting for?" she said, smiling.

"You know," he said, panting, "I think I'd rather fuck _that blue chick_."

She looked both surprised and somewhat amused. "Are you sure?"

"Come on, Raven," he whispered, kissing her neck again, "come back to me."

As he kissed her neck, he felt the texture of her skin change, and when he opened his eyes again, she was back to herself.

"Oh, God!" she gasped as he swiftly thrust into her, "oh, Erik!" She had a flicker of hope that Emma was listening in and rolling her eyes again – a thought that put a big grin on her face.

Erik was going it at it faster and harder than ever, and she found his enthusiasm and the animalistic nature of their encounter incredibly hot. When their quickie had ended, he eased her down from the wall and kissed her again.

Afterward, Raven lied on the bed while Erik stood, smoking and pouring a scotch as usual. Back in his robe, he sat on the edge of the bed and looked at her, not saying anything, content with the moment.

"Can I ask you something?" she said, looking back at him.

"Anything," he said, soft and sincere.

"If I hadn't shown up…were you going to sleep with Emma?" she looked down as she asked, then back at him.

He took a sip of his drink and set it back on the nightstand.

"Raven, I'm not going to lie to you," he took a puff, "I might've considered it. Until she made that comment about you."

Raven gave a little smile and let her eyes wander, letting his answer roll over in her head.

"I think she'll be a good addition to our team," Erik continued, "but she's got the personality of a rock."

At that, they both laughed. Raven felt like she could sit up and hug him, but was then suddenly unsure of herself. She was feeling that L-word again. She watched him take another puff of his cigar and set it down in his ash tray. He seemed so much more mature than her, but after having grown up with Charles, she tended to be attracted to that quality in men.

"Roll over," Erik said before she had finished her thought. She obeyed, and shifted onto her stomach.

He began massaging her back with his strong hands, and she felt a wave of comfort pass over her.

It would be their last happy memory for a while, as that same night, intruders entered the home.

Deep into the night, Erik was suddenly stirred awake by the sound of someone's voice. Half asleep, his still-dreaming mind picked up the phrase, "Please..no.." and then "Do it. Now." followed by the sound of soft sobbing. The crying sound clearly came from a girl, which startled him awake, but before he had a chance to react, he had the sudden sensation of pain. At first, he wasn't sure where the pain was coming from, but he opened his eyes with a yell as he realized he could feel it coursing through his entire body.

His shout woke up Raven as well, who abruptly sat up in the bed and screamed at what she saw: the room was full of men in black amour-suits, and the one closest to Erik was holding a wheelchair-bound young girl by the hair, a knife to her throat, while tears poured down her face and she laid her hand on Erik's forearm. Raven couldn't fully comprehend what was happening, but the girl's touch seemed to be toxic to Erik.

"Stop it!" Raven cried, "What are you doing?" She reached for the girl's hand, meaning to push it away, but one of them men swiftly pointed his gun at her and she froze.

Blood began to leak from Erik's nose, and he still yelled in pain.

"Erik!" Raven cried again, holding onto his other arm, "Please stop!"

Eyeing Erik's shirt, now covered in blood, the man with the knife withdrew his grip on the girl's hair and pulled his hand away.

"That's enough," he said, satisfied.

The girl removed her trembling hand and sobbed, collapsing into her wheelchair, to which Raven could now see the girl's arms, legs, and torso were secured with large belts.

"I'm sorry," the girl said through tears and snot, sounding defeated and wounded.

Erik collapsed into the bed, still grunting in agony and gasping for air. At his side, Raven touched his face and arm, trying to comfort him in the midst of her own panic.

"Erik…breathe…" she said, her hands shaking, not sure what else to say.

"The fuck..d'she do to me…" he managed, looking over at the suited man.

The man ignored Erik, and instead placed his knife in the girl's lap.

"Show me it worked," he said, plainly.

The girl let out a loud sob, and a bubble of snot escaped her nose.

"Fucking show me!" the man shouted, aiming his gun at her head.

Still crying, the girl opened her eyes and looked at the knife, trying to steady her breathing. Suddenly, the knife jumped in her lap a bit without having been touched. Raven and Erik looked on in disbelief.

"That's it. Again," said the man, still aiming his gun.

The girl stared at the knife intently, and began to shake as it levitated up in front of her face. She let out a small squeak of a grunt, as if she was straining every muscle in her body to keep the knife afloat.

"Good," said the man, snatching the knife out of the air. "Take her to the next one."

One of the other suited figures moved up, took the handles of her wheelchair, and pushed her out of the room, down the hall.

Three other figures moved over to Raven's side of the bed, one carrying what looked like a large bag. One of them leaned toward her, reaching for her wrists.

"What are you doing? What do you want?" Raven shouted, trying to evade his grasp.

The man gave her a broad slap across the face to steady her. With a loud yelp, she instinctively drew her hands to her cheek and he succeeded in grabbing her wrists, while the other man snatched up her ankles, and the third man readied the sack.

"Stop! No! Where are you taking me!" she yelled, struggling to no avail.

Erik tried to will every fiber of his body to get up and help her, but in that moment, just lifting his arm proved to be too challenging of an exertion. He realized most of the men were wearing metal armor, but he was too weak to manipulate it. The amount of adrenaline pumping through is body should've been enough to let him shake a skyscraper, but he was getting such faint readings on the amour, they could've been wearing sheets of foil…and yet, attempting to get control of them felt akin to a thousand submarines. It was like nothing he'd ever felt before.

"No! NOO!" Raven yelled as they closed the bag and carried her away. "ERIK!" she yelled in a panic.

In the midst of her confusion and panic, she felt sure that even in his state, there was no way he wouldn't save her. Then, just as she was carried out of the room, she heard, "Finish him off."

"NO! ERIK!" she yelled in anger and fear, fighting against the bag. To her horror, she then heard the sound of a gunshot.

"NOO!" she screamed again, only to have the man let her bag swing into a wall in protest with a loud thump.

Outside, she was thrown into the trunk of a car, where she could feel someone else next to her. As she felt the car start to move, she became overwhelmed by the events of the night and vomited in the bag.

"Raven? Is that you?" came another somewhat muffled female voice from inside the trunk.

"Yes. Who are you?"

"It's Emma. Can you get out of your bag? I'm trapped," she said, sounding like she was clenching her teeth.

"No, I can't either… How did you not know this was going to happen?"

"I don't know," she said softly, "They must've found some way to block me. I didn't sense them until they were already coming in the house. I don't know how that's possible… I wanted to warn everyone, but as soon as I tried to escape, they hit me with something that paralyzed me. So far I can…move my mouth."

"Did you find out what they want?" Raven asked.

"Yes," said Emma, sadly. Her tone sent a wave of fear through Raven. "Mutants. They want all of us. They want to put us in cages."

"I think they killed Erik," said Raven, crying harder.

"No," Emma said after a brief lull, "He's alive."

"What?" said Raven in surprise.

"I can feel it. He's still alive."

Within her bag, Raven actually smiled in the darkness at the news. "Can you see what's happening to him?"

"No," said Emma, regretfully, "I'm sorry. I'm too weak. Something happened after they paralyzed me…it's hard to explain, but something touched me, and I felt like I was dying."

Back in Erik's room, a bullet sat in the air millimeters from his face, while he shook and strained and groaned like the young girl earlier, trying to keep it from traveling to his head.

The man who had fired the bullet looked on, chuckling. "Where's your strength now, mutant?"

Erik's entire face turned red as if he were holding his breath, his eyes fixed on the bullet, building up its momentum. Suddenly, it fired in the opposite direction, right into the neck of the man who had fired it, sending him to the ground.

Erik collapsed back into the bed, wheezing, and rolled over to the other side, letting himself drop to the floor with a grunt, to conceal himself from the view of the doorway. He knew staying alive had to be his first priority if he had any hope of saving Raven, which he promised himself he would do, and then promptly passed out.

He awoke to sunlight pouring into the room. Standing, he could tell much of his strength had returned, though he was still not fully restored. He removed the gun from the suited body on the floor and carefully left his room, scanning the house. At first, it seemed he was alone. Looking over the railing of the hallway, he could see that Riptide was dead below, lying in a pool of blood in the living room. The house itself showed signs of struggle everywhere. Erik sighed. He had no way of knowing what these people were after, or where they had taken Raven and the others. He knew he needed to get in touch with Charles, as much as he wished he could solve the situation on his own. Still, with Raven's life at stake, he wasn't going to let pride get in the way of saving her. He continued searching the house to ensure that no one else was still around. It turned out that Azazel was still alive, though ashamed of the fact that he hadn't been able to save anyone but himself. He explained that he had teleported from the house at the first sign of trouble, but that something had prevented him from re-entering it. It had already occurred to Erik that Emma must not have sensed them coming, and he knew he couldn't underestimate what this group was capable of. He asked Azazel to take him to Charles's mansion, and he obliged, returning afterward to begin restoring his home.

Charles sensed that someone had arrived at the mansion and had brought bad news. He opened the door before Erik had knocked.

"Erik," Charles said in surprise, noticing how pale Erik looked. "What brings you back?"

Erik hadn't been fully prepared for the sight of Charles in a wheelchair, but the matter at hand held more of his concern.

"I need your help," he simply said.

Noting his solemn expression, Charles immediately lifted his finger to his temple, as Erik had expected him to do, and was shocked at what he learned.

"My God," he said, "they took her," he looked down in disbelief, and turned to go back into the mansion.

"Do you know who they are?" Erik said, following him in.

"I'm afraid I do," Charles said, "We've only recently become aware of them. They're a very cruel group of people who have started capturing mutants. They've already made raids like the one you experienced in several cities. Unfortunately, they're very efficient. And what I gathered from your memories was something I'd already suspected: they're forcing mutants to use their powers to assist them."

"That girl who touched me…" Erik said, as a half-question. Charles nodded.

"What kind of power is that, anyway? I felt like she was sucking the life right out of me."

"She was, but I'm afraid I don't have any real answers. There are still countless mutations in this world that are news even to me. It seemed, though, that her mutation allows her to temporarily borrow the mutations of others, but at quite the high price. Poor girl."

"And Raven? Do you know where they took her?"

"Not yet, but we're going to find out right now," Charles said, heading for Hank's lab. "I'll use Cerebro to track her down."

"That machine will let you search for someone specific?"

"It's not perfect yet, but it's our best chance of locating her."

They entered Hank's lab to see him working on something. He looked up, surprised to see Erik there.

"Hank," Charles began, "I need to use Cerebro immediately."

"I haven't finished remodeling it yet," Hank responded, "the stairs are still the only way up."

Erik was struck by the surreal realization of how much Charles's life had actually changed because of that single bullet.

"I don't think that's going to be an issue," Charles said, looking at Erik. "I just need to know if the machine itself is in working order."

"Yes, yes," Hank responded, "It's up and running."

Erik and Charles entered Cerebro and both looked up at the machine above them. Erik ascended the stairs to the platform and immediately used his powers to break and remove the bars surrounding machine's helmet, which would've prevented the wheelchair from fitting.

"Ready?" he asked, looking down at Charles through the opening in the platform.

"Just don't drop me," Charles said with a slight tinge of sarcasm.

"You have my word," Erik said softly, and raised Charles to the platform, floating him right over the stairs and up to the point that his head was at level with the helmet.

Once there, Charles put the helmet on, and Erik activated the machine.

Holding the wheelchair steady, Erik watched Charles intently as he received readings from the machine. He saw Charles concentrate and then look increasingly concerned.

Charles was easily able to pinpoint the location of the captured mutants, as such a dense population of them gave him a strong reading, and the machine quickly began printing coordinates. But he was appalled by what he saw inside. The facility was full of caged mutants, and all their minds were crying out in pain. Looking more closely, Charles was disgusted to discover their motives behind their kidnapping: they weren't just killing or rounding-up mutants, they were torturing them. He searched for Raven's mind, hoping to find her but also scared of what he'd discover. Finally, he found her, there in a cage, weak, sad, and helpless. He could see that she was badly injured. When he finished, he realized tears had dripped down his face, and Erik was now standing close to him, concerned.

"What is it, Charles? Did you find her?"

"Yes," he said, wiping his face, "She's alive. I know where to find her and the other captured mutants."

Erik was overjoyed at this news, and forced himself to hold in his own emotions. He could tell, though, that it wasn't all good.

"It's bad, though, Erik," Charles continued. "These people…they're capturing mutants so they can torture them. But they're not just doing that… They're using mutants' powers against them. It was the _most awful thing_ I've ever seen."

Erik looked solemnly at the ground as Charles spoke, trying to focus on the fact that Raven was still alive.

"We have to act quickly, then," he said.

"Quite right," Charles responded, and Erik lowered him to the floor as he descended the stairs.

"I have to tell you, Charles," Erik began once they were outside again, "how sorry I am that this happened. That I couldn't save her…"

"Erik, you don't owe me an explanation," Charles said, facing him, "I saw what happened in your memories. Besides, you _are_ saving her. And the important thing right now is that she's alive and she needs our help."

Erik nodded and the two headed back inside the house to round up the X-Men and depart for Raven's location.

Charles could sense that it wasn't the only thing Erik was sorry about; he could feel Erik's guilt over seeing him in the wheelchair. But both of them knew the pressing issue was more important.

Suited up, Erik, Charles, Hank, and Alex flew in a brand-new jet (imagine one similar to the one in the trilogy) to the place where Charles had seen the captured mutants. It was located in a secluded forest in an underground compound. After they had infiltrated the compound, Erik was able to enter the large chamber that held the caged mutants. Stepping inside, he immediately flung his hands up and every cage door swung open with a bang. Those who were still mobile ran, walked, or crawled out of the chamber, with many cheering. Others hurried to cages of less-fortunate mutants and assisted them in escape. Erik glanced through the crowd, looking for her face, but there was no sign of blue skin anywhere. A redhead girl in a blue shirt caught his eye at one moment. Everyone looked injured and sick. Charles and Hank were waiting outside to offer medical attention and asylum to those who needed it. Many who ran past Erik thanked him as they did, but his focus remained on locating her. He glanced into cages as he walked. There were many who were still trapped, bound to their cages or too injured to move. He came upon one cage where a young woman was hunched over an injured teen boy, softly encouraging him to get up.

"Please don't leave us," she said when she saw Erik, "please help me. I can't carry him."

"No one will be left behind," came Charles's voice, suddenly rolling up next to Erik. Alex was also with him, and he moved in to help the woman lift the boy.

"Erik, find her," Charles said urgently, looking up at him.

Erik continued on, peering into cages row after row. There were still many mutants who needed medical attention. One woman was strapped to the ceiling of her cage, above what appeared to be a fire pit, but she showed no visible burns. Another boy had been strapped into a small glass tank, rendering his appearance close to that of a tub of dough with a face and unidentifiable bends and folds. Erik kept walking, his heart heavy. He so desperately wanted to find her, but was terrified of what he would find.

Then, finally, he saw her. He had almost passed by her cage at first, as her dirty blue skin blended into the dark stone walls. But there she was, naked, curled up on the floor. He rushed to her side, removing his helmet and gloves, and knelt beside her. He felt physically ill at what he saw: there were scabs and wounds in recognizable patterns across her body. They had been plucking her scales from her skin. Pink flesh puckered and bled at the sites of recent wounds, while older ones others crusted over with scab and dirt. Random patches of scales were still intact, presumably on purpose. Glancing around her cell as he crouched, he noticed shackles where she'd been bound to the wall, and looking down, he realized that blue scales were visible across the floor with bits of old, bloody skin still attached. He winched, closing his eyes at the sight of them, his heart breaking for her, feeling enraged at those who had taken her. Most of the scales on her face had been removed, and her cheeks were streaked where near-constant tears had washed away trails in the dirt and blood. She was unconscious. He brought her head and torso into his lap, cradling her head as his thumb caressed an uninjured part of her face near her temple.

"Raven," he whispered, his tears falling onto her chest. "Oh, god, Raven, I'm sorry. Come on," he gave her a gentle shake, "come on. Please. Raven." He stroked her hair.

Ever so slightly, her face stirred.

"Raven?" he said again, his eyes widening.

"Erik?" came her voice, softly, and her tired eyes opened a bit.

"Yes, it's me. You're safe now."

She looked up at his face and immediately her lip quivered. "I knew you'd come, Erik. I knew." She reached toward him with weak, trembling arms and he gently held her closer.

"I'm here," he said, "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I couldn't save you sooner."

She coughed a dry cough through her chapped lips, furrowing her brow in pain, then glanced down at her chest and arms.

"They made me hideous," she said bitterly, missing the same scales she'd spent most of her life hating.

"They'll pay for what they've done, Raven," he responded, sad but stern. "You'll always be beautiful to me."

She looked up at him sadly, and he started to shift his weight.

"Let's get you out of here," he said, moving his arm under her knees. As he did, the fabric of his sleeve scraped sensitive open wounds on the side of her thigh, making her cry out.

"Ahhhhhg!" she shouted, her body jolting forward and her leg jerking away from his touch.

He winched at her pain and eased away his grasp. He removed his cape and carefully wrapped it around her. As he did, she seemed limp and ready to pass out, as if her scream had consumed her remaining energy.

"I'm so tired, Erik," she whined.

"Hey," he said, concerned, "keep your eyes open. Raven, let me see your eyes."

She made a small whining noise again and relaxed against his arm, as if she'd fall asleep there.

"Raven, come on," he said, getting nervous, "Hold on. I can't lose you. I can't." He swallowed. "I love you, Raven." Tears fell from his eyes again.

"I love you Erik," she slowly said in a small whisper. She tried to open her eyes, but the lids immediately dropped again.

"Raven," he cry-whispered, stroking her hair again. "Stay with me."

He hastily moved to wrap her in the cape, took her into his arms, then stood and turned to leave when he heard a voice.

"Wait," faintly came from behind them.

He turned, scanning the row of cages, not seeing anyone.

"Wait, sir," came the voice again.

Erik stepped back toward the entrance to Raven's cage, and he realized he could see someone bound to the wall of a cage diagonal to it. He stepped closer.

"I can help her," the person said. It was clear that she was female, and possibly French.

As Erik stepped closer, he could see that her arms were shackled to the wall of her cage, and thick nails were pierced into various points of her body. The two most obvious nails were jabbed into the tissue between her neck and shoulder, above the collar bone. Identical nails were pierced through every limb, hand, and foot. Around each of the nails, an ethereal white light glowed, ebbing and encircling the pierced skin. She wore just a torn, sleeveless shirt and underwear, and there was no evidence of blood having leaked from any of the wounds. In spite of her status, the woman's face seemed calm if somewhat strained.

"I can help her," she softly said again when she could see Erik's face, "If you'd be so kind…" she swallowed.

Without hesitation, Erik flung his hand, and the clasps on her hands released and every nail fell to the floor. Freed, the woman drew in a large gasp of surprise, her eyes wide at the cease of the pain, and she collapsed to the floor in front of Erik. She breathed heavily for a moment, seemingly in both exhaustion and relief. Then, the same white light glowed over her entire body. As it did, he could see the wounds on her neck and arms slowly disappear. Fully healed, the woman opened her eyes and stood to face Erik.

"Thank you," she said, soft and sincere, then turned her focus to Raven. "Please, lie her here," she said, moving toward a cleaner spot on the floor.

Erik gently laid Raven, still wrapped in his cape, onto the floor of the cell, thinking she probably had the best chance of surviving in this woman's care. The woman then gingerly took Raven's head into her arms, cradling her like Erik had earlier. She sadly examined Raven's face.

"So many times I heard her scream," she whispered, seemingly to herself, "I ached to help her."

She took Raven's hand into her own and gently kissed her temple. As she withdrew, she slowly leaned her head back, her eyes closed, and both of them began to glow with the white light. A peaceful smile formed on the woman's face as the light became brighter and Erik could see Raven's injuries start to heal. Full wounds closed up and swelling receded. Even the chapped cracks in her lips disappeared. Erik saw the woman's expression change: her smile faded a bit, and he wondered if the healing had ended. But she seemed to be contemplating something. Then, suddenly, she beamed with a new smile and the light grew brighter still, and to his amazement, Raven's scales started to reemerge. Each one of them grew back in its original beauty. He wasn't sure how it was possible, but he was overjoyed at the sight.

When Raven's original appearance was restored, the light slowly dimmed and went out. The woman opened her eyes and lovingly looked down at Raven in her arms.

"All better," she said, stroking her cheek.

Erik knelt down beside them in disbelief, and the woman moved to hand Raven back to him.

"She'll still be weak," she said. "I can only heal her. Not restore her strength." She touched Raven's head once more as Erik took her into his arms. "She needs water. And food."

"What is your name?" he asked.

"Ava," she said.

"Ava, I can't thank you enough," he said sincerely, shaking his head a bit, not knowing how to express the extent of his gratitude.

"It was my pleasure, Erik," she responded with a nod.

Suddenly, Raven spoke. "Erik?" she said.

He looked down to see her eyes open and smiled at her. Raven looked around in surprise and confusion, noticing that her wounds were gone. She immediately jolted forward and embraced him, and he held her tightly. The two of them then passionately kissed, and Ava looked on with her signature peaceful smile.

"If there's anything you need," Erik staid to Ava as they both stood, him still holding Raven, "please let me help you. Do you have a place to go?"

"I do not," she simply responded.

"Please, come with us," Erik said.

Raven was now looking at Ava. She didn't fully understand how Ava had healed her, so she felt odd expressing gratitude. She simply nodded, agreeing with Erik's suggestion.

"There are more who need my help," Ava said, "But thank you. I will remember your offer."

She looked at Raven, placing her hand on her hair again, and smiled. "So beautiful. I'm so glad I could help you."

"Thank you…" Raven said.

Ava smiled again. "I think we'll see each other again," she said, heading down the hallway to assist other injured mutants. She entered another cage, and before they turned to leave, Erik and Raven could see a white light begin to glow from the cell.

Erik quickly took Raven outside and found Charles and the others helping injured mutants on board.

"Raven!" Charles exclaimed when the two approached. She was still wrapped in Erik's cape, but Charles was shocked to see that she appeared uninjured.

"Charles! You're here too!" she responded in surprise.

"Raven…you look…" he said, still not able to detect any ailments.

"She's going to be fine," Erik said, "but she needs water."

The three of them quickly headed onto the ship, where injured mutants were sitting or lying all across the floor. Hank was treating them as quickly as he could, but running short on bandages and ointments. Avoiding the chaos, Erik headed to the front of the ship and set Raven in one of the forward-facing seats behind the pilot area.

"Is this okay? Can you sit up?"

"Yes, Erik, I'm okay. You need to get Ava in here…all these people!" she glanced back at the full ship.

Momentarily ignoring her, Erik quickly grabbed one of their gallon bottles of water and handed her a cupful.

"Here," he said eagerly.

She took a refreshing sip of the water and sighed, leaning into the chair.

"I'm afraid we're going to have to leave and come back for the rest. We've simply run out of space," Charles said, appearing beside them.

"Charles," said Raven, smiling, reaching out and holding his hand. She looked him over for a moment, realizing how much she had missed him.

"I'm so glad you're alright," he said, placing his other hand on top of hers.

"We're not taking these people anywhere," said Erik.

Raven looked up at him. "He's right," she said, "We have to get Ava. You have to go get her!"

"Who is Ava?" Charles asked, frustrated in his confusion. "And how is it that you're not injured?"

"I didn't see how she did it, so you should just read Erik's mind," said Raven.

"I wouldn't recommend that," Erik said to Charles, "She wasn't in good shape when I found her."

"I don't think Charles needs to see that," he then said to Raven, who looked down, realizing he was right.

"Ava saved me," Raven said to Charles, "Well, you all did. Erik and you saved me, but she…she healed me."

"That's her mutation," Erik said, "she's a healer."

Charles's eyes widened.

Back inside the compound, Erik and Charles were met with several other fully healed mutants walking out on their own. Old blood was crusted over healthy skin. Many of them looked understandably stunned.

As they turned the corner on the first row of cages, there she was. Erik spotted her as she was helping a young man stand up, and she smiled as he walked away on his own. Erik called her name, and she looked and started in their direction.

Charles was stunned by her beauty. Her face was full of peace and grace, her dark hair swaying as she walked. He could tell she had felt pleasure in healing the boy they'd seen her with. As he watched her, he couldn't help but read her mind, just briefly, just to see what was behind that gorgeous face. He was further enchanted by what he found there. She truly did derive ultimate pleasure from helping others. Successfully healing the injured mutants in the compound was elating her with joy. By the time she'd walked up to them, Charles felt he'd become completely infatuated with this woman. She smiled lovingly at him as she approached, sending a chill through him.

"We have others on our ship who need your help," Erik said. "If you're able."

Ava nodded. "I would be happy to, as soon as I've helped everyone here."

"We brought you this," Charles said, offering her a glass of water.

"Oh, thank you," she said sincerely, taking it and drinking. "That was very kind."

"I'm Charles," he said, "I'm very honored to meet you, Ava." She smiled again in response.

"I should keep going," she said, finishing the water, handing him the cup, and starting down the next row.

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Charles asked, turning toward her.

She turned back to face him, considering the question.

"Maybe we could start checking cells, too, and move everyone into one main area," Erik suggested.

"That could certainly make the process faster," Ava responded, "but I would urge you not to move anyone whose injuries are at risk of worsening. I cannot heal the dead."

Charles and Erik got to work relocating mutants. Erik quickly went back to Raven's cell for his helmet and gloves, and he was especially helpful in freeing mutants since he could unshackle anyone still chained up in their cell. When either one of them discovered someone extremely injured, they called out to Ava, who would quickly come and treat that individual. Charles was amazed as he watched her work. She moved from person to person like an angelic nurse, gently holding each one in her arms, holding their hand, comforting them as she healed them. He was reminded of religious tales. This, too, was a mutation Charles had never personally witnessed nor heard accounts of. Having only observed her for the better part of an hour, he felt like he could love this woman.

Emma Frost was among the injured mutants they discovered, and Erik gently freed her from her chains and carried her to the healing area.

After the last surviving mutant had been healed, the three of them departed for the ship.

As Ava was healing those on board the ship, Charles took a moment to address the crowd of rescued mutants who had gathered nearby.

"Attention, everyone! My name is Charles Xavier. I am a professor of human mutation, and I can welcome any of you who do not have a home to my school for young mutants."

Erik walked back over to Raven, still in her chair, nearly asleep. He leaned down and kissed her forehead, which roused her.

"I'll be back," he said softly.

"What? Where are you going?"

"To make sure those bastards pay."

"Erik, it's dangerous," she said in warning, "please be careful."

"That is not the way to change their minds about us, Erik," Charles chimed in. "This was a rescue mission."

"Seriously, Charles?" Raven snapped before Erik could respond. "After what they did, you want to just fly off with no revenge? You haven't changed at all, have you?" She shook her head. "Nothing will change your mind about humans. Maybe you _should_ read Erik's mind and see what they did to me."

She stood, moved closer to Erik and gave him a quick but passionate kiss. "_You_ were right about humans," she said, sitting back down.

Erik gave Charles a look, daring him to protest further and headed for the exit ramp.

"Erik!" Charles said sternly.

"Destroy them," Raven added, calling to him and standing.

Charles glared at her while Erik turned and looked back at her with a promise in his eyes as he departed the ship. A few other capable mutants tagged along with him, shaking with anger and anticipation at the opportunity to get revenge on their captors.

As Raven sunk back into her seat, she gave Charles a mischievous smirk. He still glared at her.

"I'm not suggesting that what they did was forgivable, Raven. Just that murdering them won't solve anything, and it certainly won't erase the mindset that drove them to treat mutants this way."

"Maybe not, but that doesn't mean they don't _deserve_ it."

Charles's brows furrowed a bit, having never heard her talk that way. He looked down, feeling he'd get nowhere in the now-pointless debate.

"I _am_ glad you're safe," he said, touching her hand. Saying so made him think of Ava, whom he saw crying when he looked over at her.

"Ava, are you alright?" he said.

"I do not mourn those I cannot save," she began, looking at them, "until I have saved all those I can. There were thirteen."

"There were over a hundred people there, Ava, who would not have survived without your help," he said, rolling toward her. "I'm afraid our rescue mission would've been very tragic had we not met you."

She simply smiled through her tears.

"Though, I realize that may only be small comfort…"

"Hey, wait a minute," said Raven, coming over to them and sitting in a new seat, an idea in her eyes. "If you can heal, can't you heal Charles? Make him walk again?"

"Raven, I think she's done quite enough for one day," he said, not liking the way she put Ava on the spot.

Raven ignored him and intently waited for an answer.

"I'm sorry, but it doesn't work that way," Ava said to Raven.

"But, you made my scales come back!" Raven exclaimed in semi-disbelief. "That wouldn't have been possible…"

"Actually, it was something about your mutation that allowed me to do that," Ava explained, "When I was healing you, I was surprised to sense a seemingly infinite source of extra, dormant cells in your body. I could tell they were responsive to my healing, so I asked them to replace your natural skin patterns."

"Thank you," Raven responded, stunned and thoroughly touched at her kindness.

"I was happy I could help you, Raven," Ava said. "Your skin is beautiful." They smiled at each other.

"Raven…" Charles began, looking concerned. "Your scales?"

She looked down. "Yeah…they…"

"I'm sorry," he said, "you don't have to explain."

"No, it's okay, I can tell you," she said, speaking clearly but still looking down. "They pulled them off. With pliers," she said with a tone of disgust, "One at a time. They'd do it for hours, and then leave, and then come back suddenly… If you can imagine having your fingernails ripped out, but _everywhere_…" a tear dripped down her cheek.

"Raven, I'm so sorry," Charles said, resting his hand on hers.

"Do you hate them yet?" Raven said, cynically.

"I hate what they did to you."

She pulled her hand away and then turned to look back at Ava.

"Can you at least try? To heal Charles?"

"Raven, she's already said she can't do that," he scolded.

"I can try," said Ava, nodding. "But it will disappoint you. I can only heal present wounds, not those that have previously healed."

"Please."

Ava nodded again and extended her hands to Charles.

"You don't have to do this," he said.

"I don't mind. It will be pleasant," she said, encouraging him to take her grasp.

He took her hands, and she shut her eyes. Raven watched as Charles and Ava began to glow with the airy white light. Charles let out a blissful sigh as a wave of comfort passed through him like a breath of fresh air. After a moment, she withdrew her hands and the light receded.

"Wow," Charles said, taking a deep breath. "That felt wonderful. Thank you."

"Like I said," Ava said apologetically to Raven, "The injury that paralyzed him has long since healed. There's no wound there for me to see."

Charles nodded at Raven.

"But," Ava continued, seemingly on a lighter note, "You did have an ulcer in your stomach. It's gone."

Charles blinked in surprise and Raven smiled.

"That's amazing," he said with a laugh, "you're amazing!"

Ava smiled.

Just then, a deep, low, rumbling boom was audible and palpable, and the three of them turned to look. The compound had clearly been disturbed, and Raven smiled at the thought that Erik was tearing the place up. With so many metal structures inside, she knew they'd be powerless against his strength.

After a while, Erik and the others finally emerged and re-boarded the ship. Raven ran to Erik and the two embraced.

"You did it?" she asked, noting he seemed unharmed.

"No mercy," he said, affirming that he'd sent her torturers to cruel deaths. The two of them kissed and he held her to his chest, relishing the fact that she was safe and alive.

They took their seats as the ship departed. Charles said nothing about what Erik had done, though he still disapproved of that kind of retaliation. Instead, he looked to Ava, who was leaning against the wall with her eyes shut but not sleeping. After a moment, she reopened them and saw Charles watching her.

"You must be exhausted," he said. "Is the process very draining?"

"Healing does take its toll," she began, "but it is not unpleasant. And it's very rewarding. Like hugging a sad friend or brushing someone's hair. It takes effort, but it's so worthwhile you hardly notice."

"I want you to know," he said, "that you're welcome to stay at my home as long as you like. I'm sure you'd be quite comfortable there."

"Thank you, that's very generous," she said, then looked over at Erik, "I suppose I have two invitations to consider."

Charles looked over at Erik, surprised that he'd already invited her to accompany him. He felt Ava would be much more suited to stay with him at the mansion, in no small part because of his attraction to her, and he hoped he'd be able to make this clear to Ava when he had the chance to speak to her in private.

When they landed at the mansion, it was late into the night, and Raven and Erik decided to stay rather than return to their wrecked home right away. The other mutants who had accompanied them were all given rooms in the spacious mansion, including Ava, who Charles specifically placed in a room on the first floor not far from his own.

"I hope everything is to your liking," he said from the threshold, seeing her in a white night gown, turning her sheets down.

"It is, thank you," she said, turning to him. When she did, he entered, and she saw that he had brought a tray of food for her.

"I thought you might be hungry," he offered, setting the tray on her nightstand next to the lamp.

"Wow, Charles, thank you. You're very kind."

"My pleasure," he said. "If you need anything else don't hesitate to ask. The kitchen's also just down the hall."

She nodded.

"I do sincerely hope," he continued after a brief pause, "that you'll consider staying here permanently."

"Thank you, Charles, I will," she said. "You have a beautiful home."

Meanwhile, in Erik and Raven's room, the two of them had showered, with him affectionately helping her wash the remaining dirt and dried blood from her skin. Afterward, she stepped out clean, blue, and healthy as always, and the two of them lied in bed, Erik holding her close and running his hands over her beautiful, healed skin.

"I can't tell you how afraid I was that I'd be too late," he said. "That I'd lost you."

"Afraid enough to ask Charles for help, I guess," she said with a smirk.

"Precisely," he responded, stroking her hair and kissing her.

"Listen," he said, looking in to her eyes again, "I want you to learn how to fight. How to defend yourself. You're already stronger than most, but it's not enough. I've seen the way you move...you could be a fighter so full of grace and power no one would no one would know what hit them."

"Who will teach me?" she said, smiling, intrigued.

"I've got a few options in mind," he said, then more breathily, "I want you by my side when we send them crumbling to the ground."

He moved on top of her, kissed her, and looked into her eyes.

"I love you, Raven," he said, frank and clear, wanting her to know he'd meant it earlier.

"Erik…" she said in surprise, "I love you, too."

He kissed her again and she wrapped her arms around him.

"How are you feeling? Do you need anything?" he asked afterward, still in her embrace.

"Actually…I'm starving," she said with a smile.

"Oh, of course," he said, standing. "Do you want me to get you something?"

"No, it's okay, I'll go to the kitchen," she said, kneeling on the bed in front of him.

"You're sure?" he said, running a hand down her arm.

"Yes. Erik, I'm fine," she rested her hands on his shoulders, "Really."

When Raven entered the kitchen, she was surprised to find Ava there already, getting ice from the freezer.

"Oh, hi," Raven said, somewhat awkwardly.

"Hello, Raven," Ava said, her voice smooth and friendly. "Just came in for some more cold water."

"That sounds _good_," Raven responded, realizing she was thirsty too.

"Oh, allow me," Ava said with a smile, selecting another cup from the cabinet and filling it with ice.

"You know," Raven began, "I don't know how to thank you for what you did for me."

"Raven," Ava said, handing her the filled glass, "It really was my pleasure. I _heard_ your pain. I wept for you. I longed to help you. To hold you… Look at how lovely you are," she looked over Raven's clean skin. "May I?" she asked, her hand hovering near the scales on Raven's arm.

"Of course," Raven said, feeling herself blush, and Ava delicately ran her fingers over them. "Really, though, if there's anything I can do for you, to thank you, please, just ask."

Ava withdrew her hand and smiled, taking a sip of water, and Raven did the same.

"How about a kiss?" suggested Ava, setting her glass back on the counter.

"What?" said Raven, smiling, surprised.

"A kiss from a beautiful woman? Surely there are stranger requests," said Ava with a smirk.

"Uh, okay. Sure…" Raven responded.

Ava stepped closer to her, removed the drink from her hand, and placed her hands on Raven's shoulders. She looked into Raven's eyes for a moment, then leaned in and planted her lips on hers. The kiss was impassioned but gentle, and Raven couldn't be sure if it was because she'd been healed at Ava's touch before, but she found comfort in her arms.

"Thank you," Ava whispered, her eyes still closed, after the kiss had ended.

"Sure," Raven whispered back, and Ava smiled at her, looking into her eyes.

"You can take her to bed if you like," said Erik, and the two women turned to see him standing in the doorway to the kitchen.

Raven smiled, wide-eyed at his comment.

"It's the least we can do, isn't it?" he said, smirking.

Ava gave him an amused, knowing smile, and picked up her water, moving to leave the kitchen.

"She means the world to me," Erik said to Ava, "you must know how grateful I am."

She made eye-contact with him for a moment and smiled, accustomed to being thanked repeatedly for her abilities.

"I envy you," she simply said to Erik, looking up at him as she walked past. As she left the kitchen, she turned to look at Raven again, smiled and said, "Goodnight."

Raven gave Erik a look of disbelief after she'd gone.

"What? Can't say I blame her," he said, approaching her and putting his arm around her. "I thought I'd come join you. What have we got?" he said, opening the fridge.

"I actually hadn't gotten there, yet," she said, smiling, and the two of them gathered food and ate.

That night, something suddenly caused Erik to awaken. He thought he had heard something, and when he opened his eyes, he realized Raven wasn't next to him. He looked around and saw the bathroom light on. Normally, he would've just left her alone, but given recent events, he couldn't help but be concerned. He got up and gave the door a light tap.

"Raven? You alright?"

"Yeah, you can come in."

He opened the door and saw her sitting on the closed lid of the toilet looking anxious.

"I just couldn't stay asleep," she said.

"I thought you'd be exhausted," he said, leaning against the sink.

"I was…I am… I just keep having these terrible dreams. And thoughts," she said, rubbing her eyes.

"Hey," he said in a comforting tone, touching her shoulder. "It'll pass. It just takes time."

"I didn't mean to wake you up," she said apologetically.

"You should've," he said. "Come on," he added, taking her hand, encouraging her to stand.

Back in bed together, he held her.

"It'll pass," he said again, "Your mind is trying to make sense of what happened to you. Problem is, it _doesn't_ make sense. It wasn't fair or logical or explainable or anything. You'll get to the point when you can accept that."

Raven knew he was speaking from experience, and what he said sounded pretty realistic.

"I used to feel so safe here," she reflected.

"You are safe," he said, holding her closer. "What if I stay up tonight? I'll make sure no one comes in here while you sleep."

"Erik…" she shook her head.

"I mean it," he responded.

"I know you're exhausted, too," she said.

"Don't worry about me," he said, stroking her hair and kissing her forehead.

"Can we keep talking for a while?"

"Of course," he said, wondering if she wanted to talk about what happened to her.

She examined her own hand, running her fingers over the scales on her knuckles as she clenched her fist.

"I thought I'd never look the same," she said. "I couldn't imagine what you'd think when you saw…if you'd still want me."

"_Raven_," he said in a gentle scolding.

"You always talk about my skin. How I'm a work of art. What would I be to you covered in scars?"

"A testament to man's habit of trying to ruin beautiful things," he responded. "And their failure to understand true beauty at all." He kissed her. "It's not just your scales that make you a work of art, Raven," he added.

"What if I looked like this?" she said, transforming into her old blond disguise. "If this was really me? Would you still love me?"

"Raven, now you're being ridiculous. This isn't you. I love the real you. Everything about her."

"At least she's still intact," she said, looking down as she un-transformed.

"Hey," he said, lifting her chin, "you'd still be the most exquisite thing I've ever seen. But I think you need to go to sleep."

She smiled a little, realizing her reflections and rambling were probably at least partially drowsiness-inspired.

"Yeah, I do," she said, yawning and scooting back to snuggle into her pillow.

Erik placed his pillow against the headboard and sat up.

"Are you really going to stay up?" she said, opening her eyes again.

"Yes. So you know you have nothing to worry about," he said, stroking her arm.

The next morning, she awoke to see Erik still sitting next to her, now reading by the glow of sunlight resonating from behind the window's drawn curtain.

"Good morning," he said upon seeing her stir.

She smiled up at him, touched at his generosity.

"You seemed to sleep alright," he observed. She nodded.

"Thank you, Erik."

"Anytime."

She stretched and got up to freshen up. Erik turned on his lamp and continued reading. When she came back out, he looked up from his book as she walked over to him.

"Breakfast?" he suggested.

Instead of responding, she slid the book out of his hands and laid it on the bed, then crawled up onto him, straddling him and sitting on his lap. She kissed him, then kissed his neck near his ear, and he got the message that breakfast wasn't what was on her mind. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed back. His response made her more enthusiastic, and she let out a sharp gasp when she felt him begin to rub her clit. He hadn't been sure if she'd be ready for sex for a while, so her assertiveness surprised him, but he was happy to oblige. He took it slow and gentle, and gave her the healing, life-affirming sex she'd been craving. Afterward, Erik decided to get some sleep while Raven went to the kitchen.

Later that morning, Charles and Ava were roaming around outside, when a group of children ran past them. They were the youngest rescued from the facility and had become fast friends. Charles and Ava smiled, seeing the kids genuinely enjoying themselves. Then, one little girl with bright white hair tripped and fell as she ran up to the walkway. Sitting up, it was clear that she'd skinned her knee.

"Oh dear," Charles said sympathetically.

"Oww," the girl said, bending to look at her scrape as she sat on the ground. As she said it, there was a slight rumble of thunder and the sky suddenly went from peaceful to overcast.

Ava knelt down beside the girl. "Let me see," she said, and placed her hand on the girl's knee next to the scrape. Ava's hand and the girl's knee glowed, and the scrape disappeared. Just after it did, the sun shone again and a few birds sang.

"All better," Ava said, smiling at the girl.

The girl looked at her knee and then back up at Ava with a huge smile. "Thank you!"

"What's your name?" Charles asked.

The little girl stood up and looked at him. "Ororo," she said happily.

"I'm so happy you're here, Ororo," he said.

"Me too!" she said, and ran off to rejoin her friends.

Charles smiled up at Ava as the two of them continued walking.

Meanwhile, Erik was also walking outside, looking around for Raven. He did a double-take when he saw a man sitting on a bench and realized it was himself.

"Raven, _what on earth_ are you doing?" he said, confused, walking up to her.

"I wanted to feel strong," she said with a small shrug.

"Come on," he said, sitting on the bench beside her, "I can't talk to you like that."

She smiled at him, amused. "Why not?" Then she closed her eyes and pursed her lips.

"Raven, I am _not_ going to kiss myself," he said, uncomfortable but amused.

"Listen," he said looking out ahead of them to avoid staring at his own face, "I just wanted to let you know that I'm thinking of leaving tomorrow morning, if that's alright with you."

Her smile faded. "Yeah, that's fine," she said, looking down, "I guess we'll be going back…?"

"Unless you need me to find another place."

She shrugged again. "I don't know where that would be. I think it will be fine."

"I told you, I want you to feel safe…" he paused when he looked over at her again. "God, Raven, I feel like I'm talking to myself. How about we continue this when you feel like looking like _you_."

He gave her a look, stood, and left. She waved, making him roll his eyes.

"You know," Charles said to Ava as the two of them rounded a corner of the house, "I can't help but observe what an invaluable addition you'd make to our campus. And I certainly enjoy your company."

In response, she did something he hadn't expected. She stopped to look at him, but instead of speaking, she simply ran her hand through his hair. The gesture was kind and simple, but it sent a wave of nervousness through him. Ava had quickly come to suspect that Charles fancied her, and she wasn't afraid to let him know that she was completely comfortable with that knowledge. On the other hand, Charles was anything but comfortable, and his eyes darted around, searching for a way to change the subject. Up ahead, he spotted Erik sitting on a bench, seemingly staring off into space.

"Ah, Erik!" Charles called to him, somewhat confused at his behavior. Erik didn't respond, so Charles moved closer and Ava followed.

"Are we interrupting some great daydream, then, Erik?" he asked.

"Hmm?" Erik said, snapping out of it. "Oh, I'm sorry," he said, and quickly un-transformed into Raven. Even Charles had not expected that.

"I didn't mean to trick anyone," she said, slightly embarrassed.

"How remarkable," said Ava, having never seen Raven's ability before.

"We won't be in the way too much longer," Raven said to Charles, "Erik's just getting some things…sorted out." She decided she probably shouldn't admit that Erik was attempting to recruit more mutants to their cause.

"Raven, this is your original home. You are always welcome to stay as long as you need."

Raven smiled.

"_I'm_ certainly enjoying your company," Ava said, quoting Charles from before as she smiled flirtatiously at Raven, who smirked.

Recognizing his line, Charles looked at each of them and could clearly see that Ava was hinting at something he didn't know about. Without lifting his finger, he quickly touched Ava's mind – something he had previously resolved not to do – and saw the moment she'd kissed Raven.

Somewhat startled, he cleared his throat and excused himself. He went back inside the house and headed for his lounge room, where the Chess board had gone untouched since Erik had last been there. Charles decided it was too early in the day for scotch, and moved over to the window, where he observed a few birds on the ground outside, pecking at crumbs someone had left behind.

"I can't imagine growing up in a home this big," said Ava, entering the room. He hadn't realized she had followed.

"It does make one pretty independent," Charles responded, glancing at her, then resuming his gaze out the window.

"I didn't realize Raven grew up with you."

He turned to her. "Yes, she's like a sister to me."

"And such a lovely young woman," Ava added.

"Right…" Charles said, trailing off.

Ava sat in a chair next to the window and studied Charles's expression.

"Though somewhat disillusioned with humanity, it seems," she added. "As is understandable."

"Would you say that you're disillusioned as well?" Charles asked, looking at her.

"I don't know," she responded, her signature micro-smile intact. "I'm not sure I've had a good impression of the world recently enough to become disillusioned."

There was a moment of silence between them as Ava glanced out the window, thinking, and Charles watched her face.

"Although," she said finally, "I can see that staying here could potentially make one very optimistic. I had no idea there were places like this. For us." She smiled again at Charles.

"Where are you originally from?"

"Paris, originally. Then later we moved closer to the beach. But we had to leave France when I was sixteen. At first, when people became aware of my abilities, it was good news. They called me an angel. But then…something happened…I messed up. After that, everything changed. Every time someone died, it was my fault for not saving them. My family couldn't handle it, so we came to America. We didn't tell anyone where we were going. I can only imagine how hostile they became when they realized we left. But I do miss the beach."

Charles had been intently listening to her, but he could tell she didn't feel like discussing the darker parts of her past right away, so he didn't ask any questions, and he didn't read her mind. Instead, he redirected the conversation.

"I didn't realize you could focus your healing on one specific spot like you did for the girl who fell earlier," he said.

"Yes," she said. "When the injury is obvious and small, I can do that. Otherwise, I think it's better to turn all the lights on, so I don't miss anything."

"I'm sorry – turn the lights on?"

"Oh, yes, that's how I think of it," she said, leaning forward in the chair. "When I connect with someone's body using my healing energy, it's like it gets mapped out for me. Like I see it flow into their body, and any spots that shine too brightly need to be patched up, like holes in a canopy."

"That's a very beautiful analogy, Ava."

She smiled at him again, letting her eye-contact linger, and leaned farther toward him, so that their faces were close together. She looked into his eyes a moment longer and, not sensing any withdrawal on his part, leaned in and kissed him. Charles leaned forward as well, returning the kiss and placing his hand on her neck. Sensing his enthusiasm, Ava scooted out of her chair, sat sideways across his lap, smiled, and resumed kissing him, letting her arms rest around his shoulders. At first, he'd been elated at the kiss, but her assertiveness sent a sudden wave of discomfort through him.

"Sorry," he whispered, breaking the kiss and glancing at the hallway. "Someone might come by."

Ava glanced over at the quiet hallway and back at him. "I'm sorry. I've made you uncomfortable. That wasn't my intention."

"Forgive me if this is too frank, but I was inclined to think you were more interested in Raven."

Ava's coy smile grew a bit. "Raven is amazing woman. I've never met anyone like her. But does that make it fair to assume she's the only one who's caught my eye?"

She leaned her face closer to his again and ran her hand through his hair. "Is this not what you want?"

Unable to resist the temptation, Charles embraced her and pressed his lips to hers again, and they resumed kissing. As Ava's enthusiasm grew, though, Charles began to feel more doubt creeping over him, in no small part because of the fact that he'd yet to attempt sex since his paralysis. More pressing, however, was his growing attraction to Ava, which was more than physical.

"Ava," he said, in a moment when she'd begun kissing his neck. She looked up at made eye-contact.

"I'm afraid I want more than this," he said, responding to her question.

"We're just getting started," she said happily, leaning toward him again.

"I mean," he continued. "I hoped to keep getting to know you…"

"Why can't this be part of getting to know each other? Two people lying together, finding pleasure in each other's bodies…what could be better?"

"Ava, what I'm trying to say is that this would mean a lot more to me than just pleasure."

She blinked, her brows furrowing ever so slightly, wondering exactly what he meant.

"I think I could love you," he said in a whisper.

At that, she maintained eye-contact, but her smile faded a bit, so that she looked contemplative. She straightened up a bit and cocked her head, studying his face. He couldn't read her expression.

"Charles…" she said softly in a mix of flattery and sympathy. "I'm afraid I _am_ a bit disillusioned with romantic love."

Charles simply looked down, having not expected that type of a response. "I think I'd like to be alone for a while, if that's alright," he said.

"Of course," she said, withdrawing her hands from his shoulders. "I'm so sorry if I've disappointed you," she added, easing off his lap.

He looked at her, then down again, saying nothing in response. She offered a small, sympathetic smile and left the lounge room.

Later that day, Erik found Raven working out in the weight room. She was wearing a tank top and sweatpants, doing curls with hand weights when he walked in.

"That's better," he said, happy to see her looking like herself.

She set the hand weight on the floor and took a drink of water. "You know," she began, "you were right. I do need to learn to fight. I want to be strong. Confident. Not afraid."

"Glad to hear it," he said, sitting on the weight bench next to her. He looked over her face for a moment, then leaned in and kissed her, not unlike their first night together.

"What was that for?" she asked after the brief kiss.

"You," he said simply, raising his eyebrows a bit.

After a moment of silence, he continued. "Did you think about what I said earlier? Are you alright with going back to Azazel's mansion?"

"I told you, it's fine," she said. "It makes sense for us to go back there."

He nodded, patted her back, and got up to leave.

"Erik," she called to him. He turned toward her.

"I'm glad you killed those men who took us," she said firmly.

"Nobody fucks with Magneto," he said in response, eliciting a wicked smirk from Raven.

That night, when Erik got to his room to get ready for bed, he was surprised to open the door and find Ava sitting in one of his chairs.

Having had her advances refused by Charles, she was still somewhat hopeful for some romantic attention.

"Hello, Erik," she said as he entered.

"Hello, Ava. What brings you by?"

"I was just thinking… I never got to heal you. I healed Charles on the aircraft yesterday, so it hardly seems fair."

"I appreciate the offer, but I wasn't aware I was in need of healing."

"Oh, but the process is quite pleasant! Please, sit."

Figuring he had nothing to lose, he sat in the chair across from her and she took his hands. She closed her eyes and the normal healing process began. As they glowed, Raven entered and sat on the bed, observing them. When it had ended and they both opened their eyes, Ava noticed her sitting there.

"Oh, hello, Raven. I didn't hear you come in."

"What's going on? Was Erik hurt?"

"Oh, no, I just wanted to make sure he got the chance to experience the healing as well."

"Thank you," he said.

"My pleasure," she said, and suddenly realizing her other intentions might not sit well with Raven, got up to leave.

"Does that mean you're not coming with us?" Raven asked.

Ava turned to her, somewhat confused, and Erik realized he'd forgotten to inform her of their schedule.

"We're leaving in the morning. Our offer still stands," Erik said to Ava.

"Oh, I see. I guess I have a big decision to make. Thank you," she said. "Goodnight."

Ava headed down the hallway, considering this new information, feeling conflicted. She was very drawn to Raven, but felt she did not share that connection. She'd also enjoyed speaking with Charles and found him genuinely kind and very intelligent, but wasn't sure how things stood between them after the events of the day. She decided she'd better set things straight, and went looking for him. After he wasn't in his room, she found him in one of the lounges again, this time with a scotch in his hand and music playing.

"Care for a drink?" he said when he saw her walk in, skipping the formalities.

"No, thank you," she said. "Erik and Raven have just told me they'll be leaving in the morning and asked me again to come with them."

"Is that what you're going to do, then?" he asked, looking absently at his glass.

"Well, I don't know," she said.

Looking up at her, he realized it was the first time he'd seen her looking totally serious in the course of that day.

"I was wondering if your invitation to stay here was still standing," she added.

"Ava," he said in slight surprise, "of course it's still standing."

At that, a faint smile returned to her lips.

"Would you like me to help you decide?" Charles asked.

"Alright," she said, happy and relieved that there seemed to be no real tension between them. She sat in a chair by the fireplace.

"How did you feel about Erik's decision to murder the men operating that compound?" he posited.

Ava considered his question for a moment.

"I can tell you that's very consistent with his character and way of thinking," Charles added, taking a drink.

"And what's your way of thinking, Charles?"

"I believe in peace. I believe peace between humans and mutants is not only possible, but realistically attainable, and most importantly, necessary. And I think the responsibility falls onto our shoulders to take the first steps toward cultivating such a peace. Erik, on the other hand, can only envision us divided…at war. Joining him is joining an army, make no mistake of that."

"And here I'm joining a school," she stated.

"Right," he said. "A school where mutant children can learn in a safe and welcoming environment, and then rejoin society as educated young adults… I realize I may come off a bit biased, but really, you should choose the path that suits you."

He took another sip of his scotch as she processed everything he'd said.

"The people who captured us," Ava said after a few moments, "were an extreme manifestation of intense hatred for our kind. The things I saw and experienced…they were genuinely evil. So, I have to admit that even I breathed a sigh of relief at the thought that they're no longer in this world."

Charles glanced blankly around as he listened, wondering if she was leaning toward leaving with Erik after all.

"But," Ava continued. "I don't think that's the nature of most people."

He looked at her face, waiting for her to continue. As usual, Ava smiled at him.

"I would be honored to be a part of your school," she finally said.

"And we're profoundly lucky to have you, Ava," Charles replied.

The next morning Raven, Erik, and his new recruits were ready, standing in the yard when Azazel appeared. Ava approached them and walked up to Raven, placed her hands on her shoulders, and explained that she'd decided to stay, but that if she or Erik ever needed her help, they shouldn't hesitate to find her. Ava hugged her and kissed her cheek, then retreated and backed up as they teleported away. Raven told her to take care of Charles, like she had to Moira when she left with Erik the first time. But it was the first time Raven had left the mansion without officially saying goodbye to Charles. She felt it was better this way, because she wanted to avoid another emotional moment with him. After his failure to see eye-to-eye with her on the jet, she felt more disconnected with him than she had in years. She felt she was now unwaveringly in support of Erik's viewpoint, and all she could think about was getting started on her training.


	3. New Lives

**Chapter 3: New Lives**

_THREE MONTHS LATER_

The residents of Azazel's mansion were getting ready for a party. There wasn't really any occasion, but the young mutants of the house had decided a random party was in order to break the monotony of training and other seriousness.

Raven had decided to mix things up regarding her appearance, as well. Still in her true skin, she had donned a little black dress and applied eyeliner. She'd also morphed her red locks into a different style: longer with a bit of curl at the base. She was looking at herself in a full-length mirror when Erik entered their room.

"Wow," he said in genuine surprise.

"What do you think?" she asked, turning to him.

He walked up to her.

"Raven, you look…" he reached out and touched her curled hair, noticing that she'd made it longer than usual. "Amazing."

She smiled. "So it's not like I'm trying too hard, or—" she was unable to finish, as Erik planed his lips on hers. That was when she realized there was scotch on his breath.

"Are you already drunk?" she said after the kiss in slight amusement.

Instead of responding, he started kissing her neck, his hands caressing her torso.

"Erik, the party's about to start."

"So? We live here, it's not like we'll be late," he said, resuming kissing her.

"Erik," she laughed.

He started to pull her toward the bed. "Come on," he said. "I won't mess up your hair. You can keep the dress on."

She laughed again and complied.

Not much later, everyone was gathered in the living room with loud music playing and drinks being shared. A group of twenty-somethings were gathered close to the middle of the room loudly talking and laughing. They had grown close since moving into the mansion, especially through training. Erik had been adamant about making sure everyone was fit for battle in his/her own way, and had modeled the exercises after what he'd learned at Charles's mansion, watching those young mutants master their abilities. Raven's training had been some of the most intense, since she'd been learning how to hold her own in combat, so she hadn't become as acquainted with the new recruits as they had with each other. Everyone was due for some R&R, so the party was a success.

At one point in the evening, Raven decided to take a breather and headed upstairs, only to realize that Azazel was standing by the railing, observing the festivities below.

"Not much of a partier, huh?" she said, trying to make conversation.

"Not my kind of party," he responded.

Raven leaned against the railing and watched everyone below. Angel was standing on the table; apparently someone had decided she should show off her old stripping moves. Others cheered as she began to dance to the music.

"I know what you mean," she said.

Azazel smirked. He said something to her, but she was distracted when she saw Angel's dancing progress over to Erik, where she said something to him and it became a lap dance. People ooooo'ed over it, while Erik laughed drunkenly. Raven's eyes widened and she shook her head.

"Sorry, what did you say?" she said to Azazel.

"That's quite a dress," he said frankly.

"Oh…" she said, having not expected a compliment. "Thank you."

He nodded. "Excuse me," he said and disappeared.

Below, everyone cheered when Angel's dance had ended with the song. Raven headed back downstairs as the crowd dispersed throughout the room.

"Having fun?" she said, sitting on the arm of Erik's chair.

"Raven, you missed it," he said drunkenly.

"No, I was watching."

"Oh," he laughed.

She was beginning to find the situation too similar to the times she'd stood around boredly while Charles drank and hit on women.

"You could've joined her on the table," he said, smirking.

"I'm way too sober for that," she retorted.

"Why?" he said, looking up at her.

"That's a good question," she said, and immediately headed to the kitchen for some quick shots.

Later into the night, the music was still going strong, but people had started to gather elsewhere. One group of teenagers was gathered in the backyard, with others in the kitchen, and some seeking privacy in bedrooms. The house was littered with party trash. Raven had joined in on some drunken games in the kitchen for a while, when she decided to go searching for Erik. She hadn't seen him in a while and wondered what he'd been doing. After not seeing him in the backyard or living room, she decided to check their bedroom, where she was surprised to be able to hear both a male voice and female voice coming from inside, followed by giggling.

At first, she thought two other people had drunkenly chosen her room, but was then surprised again when she recognized Erik's laugh.

"What the hell…" she muttered to herself, opening the door. There, she saw Erik shirtless and laughing on their bed with Angel. The two of them were clearly being more than friendly; she was lying down and he was "above" her in a way that made it obvious they had been making out.

"Erik?" Raven said in disbelief.

"Raven!" he said, looking at her with absent eyes.

"What the fuck?" she said with an angry smile, her tone sarcastically bright.

The question made Angel laugh harder, which just made Raven more pissed.

"Shut up," she said, stepping toward them. "Get your ass out of my bed."

Angel rolled her eyes and got up to leave.

"Raven, calm down," Erik said, reaching for her arm.

"No," she said, pulling away from him and leaving the room behind Angel.

"Raven!" he said, getting up to follow her. "Raven, wait."

He followed her into the hall and successfully grabbed her arm. In response, Raven's training kicked in, and she was able to use his grasp against him, as she tensed her arm and pushed him up against the wall. She then shot him a don't-fuck-with-me look.

"You really are learning fast," Erik said in a mix of surprise and pride, referring to having heard from her trainers that she was picking up on fighting techniques more quickly than most.

"I _know_," she said, and turned to walk away from him.

"Raven!"

"We'll talk when you're sober."

Angry and losing her buzz, Raven headed down to the kitchen for some water. On the way there, she hit the "off" button on the stereo to help send the party to an end. In the kitchen, she sighed as she drank a glass of water and wondered where she would sleep that night.

Suddenly, Azazel literally appeared in the doorway. Raven jumped a little when she saw him out of the corner of her eye.

"Oh, it's you," she said, standing to put her cup in the sink. When she did, she noticed it was already overflowing with dishes.

"We'll make sure the house gets cleaned up tomorrow," she said to him.

Instead of responding, he simply looked her over.

"None of us take your generosity for granted," she added.

Azazel extended his hand and lifted hers to his lips, where he kissed it politely, much to her surprise.

"Goodnight, Mystique," he simply said and vanished.

Raven stood there, a bit stunned at what had just occurred. One the one hand, she'd never thought about Azazel in any kind of romantic way, but then, she felt like she didn't know him that well. And on the other hand, she could understand that he might be interested in her due to their shared experience as mutants "of color," so to speak. She shrugged it off and was able to find an unoccupied room in the spacious mansion, where she fell asleep.

The next day, most of the residents slept in well past the morning due to hangovers and post-party exhaustion. When Erik awoke, he could clearly recall the events of the night. He poured a cup of tea in the kitchen to ease his pounding head, and then frantically began searching for Raven. After looking in several rooms and asking around, he started to wonder if she'd left the mansion. He started opening the doors of random bedrooms, annoying those who were still asleep, until finally, he opened one door and was surprised and relieved to see a blue arm and shoulder emerging from the sheets. Her hair was back to normal.

Erik moved closer to the bed, setting his tea on the bedside table. He sat on the edge of the bed and looked at her. The movement roused her, and she turned over and saw him. He looked tired. She had a hard time staying mad at him because she wanted to just pull him into the bed with her and keep sleeping. She stared at him for a moment, waiting to see if he had anything to say.

"I love you, Raven," he said, looking into her eyes.

She looked down, wondering if he had anything to add.

"I meant it when I said I couldn't lose you."

She looked back up at him.

"I _can't_ lose you, Raven," he said, his voice growing softer. "Tell me how to make this up to you."

"Erik," she said, sitting up. "I just don't understand why…I know you were drunk, but if you wanted to be with her, you could've asked me."

Erik furrowed his brows slightly, wondering if she really meant his only mistake was not seeking permission first.

"I mean," she said, rubbing her eyes, "you could've asked me to look like her."

"Oh," he said, looking down. "It wasn't something I'd previously wanted or planned. It just…"

"_Happened_? Really? Is that what you're going with?"

"Look, things just escalated, but I don't have a great excuse. I'm glad you opened the door when you did."

She sighed, not knowing what to say. She couldn't help but recall the time he'd almost left Charles's mansion because he was afraid staying together would mean hurting her again.

"The thing is," he started again, "I know nothing I'm about to say justifies what I did. But, if the tables were turned, and you had wanted to be with someone else last night…I wouldn't mind."

She gave him a surprised look, genuinely not having expected to hear something like that.

"If that's what you wanted, it wouldn't matter to me, as long as you came back to our bed eventually," he said, stroking her cheek. "But I know we never talked about any of that, and I had no right to do what I did. I'm sorry. Say the word, and it won't happen again."

Instead of saying anything, Raven leaned forward and embraced him, kissing him and then shifting into a hug. He hugged her back with a sigh of relief.

"Come on, you look exhausted," she said, scooting to the other side of the bed.

He lied down close to her.

"Erik," she said, placing her hand on his arm, "you're not gonna lose me."

She kissed him, and the two of them slept into the early afternoon.

In the weeks that followed, Raven thought a lot about what Erik said regarding their relationship. She wasn't sure how she felt about the two of them being free to sleep with others, as she had genuinely never considered that as an option for serious "in love" relationships. It gave her that feeling she had occasionally when she remembered how much older and more experienced Erik was. She was glad he had apologized the way he did, without making her feel like she was immature for being angry.

"I just don't know if that's what I want," she said to him on that topic.

"You don't have to know right now," he replied, wrapping his arms around her from behind as they stood in their bedroom. "And you can always change your mind."

Her mind did change about a month later, when she happened to have another somewhat heated encounter with Azazel in the hallway. She was surprised to realize how much she wanted him, especially in light of the fact that being with him wouldn't hurt Erik. When he ran his hand up her thigh, she gave in, and kissed him. He teleported them to his bedroom, where they had a proper romp in the sheets and she discovered what a passionate yet dominating lover he was. As fun and hot as it was, Raven couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt as she headed back to Erik's room that night. Her heart was pounding as she opened the door. In spite of what he'd said, she felt like she'd done something wrong. Erik was reading his evening paper and having a cigar when she entered. She almost felt like throwing herself into his arms and apologizing.

"There you are," he said upon seeing her. "What's wrong?" he asked, noting her expression.

She walked up to the bed but didn't sit down. "I'm feeling so guilty right now."

"What about?"

"I had sex," she blurted out, "with…Azazel."

"Azazel? Really?" Erik asked in genuine surprise.

Raven's eyes widened and she nodded.

"Well…you don't need to feel guilty about that!" he said, setting his newspaper aside so she could sit and lean against him. "Come here," he added with a little head tilt.

He held her, wrapping his arms around her torso from behind, and kissed her cheek. "After everything we talked about?"

"I know…" she said. "I just felt like I was doing something wrong."

"You don't love him, do you?" Erik asked half-heartedly.

"No!" she laughed, looking at him.

"It'll help you decide what you want," Erik said comfortingly.

"Well, now that I've done it, I don't really think I can fault you for it," she said.

"Nobody's keeping score," he said. "I want you to be happy."

She turned to look at him. "I want you to be happy, too," she said, and passionately kissed him, wrapping her arms around him. "I love you so much."

A few weeks later, Raven spent the night with Azazel a second time and, after seeing that it didn't weaken her feelings for Erik in any way, decided that they could open their relationship within certain parameters, which included limits to the frequency with which encounters could happen. However, things got more complicated when, about two months later, Raven discovered she was pregnant and had no way of knowing who the father was. She had heard about how dangerous abortions were and didn't want to go that route. Erik remained unwaveringly supportive during the ordeal, and the two of them were as close as ever. Azazel didn't have much to say when Raven told him it might be his, except that time would tell and she should let him know if she needed anything.

_ ABOUT NINE MONTHS LATER_

_By this point, Raven's pregnancy was impossible to conceal, even if she was morphed, because she couldn't change the size of the fetus. So, pretty much all of her disguises looked pregnant, too_.

A battle was raging at the mansion, and even though she was due soon, Raven knew she could be of help during the fight. She wouldn't let Erik forbid her from fighting, no matter how much he wanted to. Apparently someone wanted revenge on Erik for destroying the compound where mutants were tortured. During the battle, Erik looked around and noticed Raven was no longer among them. He scanned the room for her, and saw her hunched over in the corner, holding her stomach. She was leaning against the wall to try to stay standing, but dropped to her knees as she winced. Erik immediately ran to her side and helped her stand, noticing the carpet was wet at her feet.

"Erik, it hurts," she said in a panic.

"I know," he said, guiding her to a staircase in the back. "Let's get you out of here."

Ascending the stairs, he took her into one of the rooms as far away from the fighting as possible and helped her lie down on the bed. Her eyes were wide with fear, her breathing heavy. Erik removed his helmet and gloves.

"Erik," she said, "they need you out there."

He took her hand tightly. "I'm not going anywhere."

She closed her eyes and squeezed his hand as another contraction took hold.

"God," she said as it passed, "I can't believe how much this hurts."

Erik looked on sympathetically and stroked her shoulder.

"You were right," she sighed, "I shouldn't have tried to fight…"

"No," he said, touching her cheek, "I'm glad I knew when you needed me."

She sighed again nervously, feeling terrified and surreal. Suddenly, Azazel appeared in the room.

"Is there any way I can help?" he asked Raven.

"Can you get Ava?" she said after considering the question for only a second.

Erik and Azazel were both surprised by her response, and Azazel didn't answer immediately.

"Please? Do you remember her?" Raven asked.

Azazel nodded once and disappeared.

Ava was asleep in her room in Charles's mansion when she was awakened by an unfamiliar sound. She jolted up in bed when she realized another person was standing in her room, and it took her a second to make sense of his presence.

"I know you…" she said, recalling his red skin.

"Raven asks for you. She's giving birth."

Ava's eyes widened in surprise and disbelief. Without another word, she stood from the bed and took his hand.

He teleported back to the bedroom where Raven and Erik were waiting.

"Ava!" Raven said in greeting upon seeing her. It had been about a year since the two of them had seen each other, and Ava's previously straight brunette hair was now light blond with curl at the base.

Ava smiled and moved forward to sit on the edge of the bed.

"Look at you!" she said, touching Raven's stomach and leaning forward to hug her.

"How frequent are her contractions?" she asked Erik.

"Less than ten minutes apart," he said with a shrug. He hadn't been keeping track. Raven nodded.

"Ah, alright," Ava said, standing. "I want you to come over here and get on your knees," she said, walking around to the other side of the bed (the side farther away from the door). She grabbed a pillow from the bed and dropped it on the ground, creating a place for Raven to kneel.

Raven reluctantly started to move over, not sure why Ava was suggesting this.

"We want gravity on your side. It'll make it easier," Ava explained, helping her kneel on the pillow with her arms and chest against the bed.

Erik walked around and sat on the bed next to her, taking her hand again.

Ava scooted up behind her and began massaging the sides of her lower back, which was exactly where Raven was feeling the tension of the contractions.

"Can you make it hurt less?" Raven asked.

"I'm sorry, dear, I can't heal you until it's out," she said.

An intense contraction made Raven grasp the bed sheets and Erik's hand tightly, while she whined and writhed in pain.

"Breathe, Raven," Ava said, letting her chest rest against Raven's back, her head against hers.

Unsure of what to say or do, Erik rested his other hand on Raven's shoulder in sympathy and support, immensely grateful for Ava's presence.

Ava looked over at him.

"Get us some cloths and a large bowl of water, please," she said.

Erik obeyed, heading down the hall to the bathroom.

"Tell me when you feel like you're ready to push," said Ava.

"I don't know; it just hurts," Raven said. Ava rubbed her back again.

"I know, Raven, just breathe," Ava said again, noting the panic in Raven's voice.

"You seem to know what you're doing," Erik said to Ava as he returned with the supplies.

She smiled. "I may've done this once or twice," she said with a hint of sarcasm, implying that she had witnessed many births.

Raven suddenly tensed again as another contraction took hold.

"Wow, those are close together," Ava observed.

"Guhhhh," Raven grunted in pain, "Ok…I think…I think I need to push."

Ava reached down and, feeling with her hand, confirmed that the baby's head was starting to crown.

"Yes, you do!" she said.

"Take a breath," she said, her voice a whisper in Raven's ear. Raven obeyed the command. "Go for it."

With another closed-mouth scream, Raven did as she was told and began to push.

"That's it," Ava said comfortingly.

After a few seconds, Raven went limp and gasped for air.

"Oh my god," she said, "I can't do this."

"Yes you can," Ava whispered. "You have to. You're so close."

Raven groaned and pushed again, burying her face in the mattress. Ava's hands left Raven's sides so that she could help guide the baby out. Looking down, Erik caught his first glimpse of it.

"That's it, Raven! You're doing it!" he said in encouragement.

Raven broke her push again to breathe, taking in sharp gasps of air, her expression pained. By the end of it, her face was covered in tears and snot, and she collapsed down onto the drenched pillow, her face still pressed into the mattress.

Ava looked at the infant in her arms in disbelief. Even covered in blood, it was clear that he was blue. But that wasn't all. His tiny head was covered with a light black fuzz, and he had a long tail that ended in a point, identical to Azazel's. Ava's jaw was slack at the sight of him. She looked over at Erik with a mixture of incredible surprise and joy on her face, as if to say, _Can you believe this?_

The answer, of course, was no. Erik stared at him for a few moments in awe, and then finally turned back to Raven with a smile on his face.

"Raven," he said happily, "he's blue!" He stroked her back. "He's blue like you." He kissed her cheek.

Raven turned to look at the baby, and reached out to touch his head. "Oh my god," she said, out of breath. "Look at _you_." Her heart sank a little at the sight of the tail. She felt overwhelmed with emotion and exhaustion.

"Here," Erik said, reaching for the baby, "let me take him so you can help her."

Ava gingerly handed him over.

"Ava," Raven pleaded, letting herself lean back so that her head was against Ava's shoulder.

"Yes, I'm sorry, here we go," she said, gently embracing her and letting her healing energy take over.

A peaceful calm passed over Raven's face as her injuries vanished. Ava was somewhat surprised at the extent of tearing she had endured.

"All better," she whispered after the healing had ended, still embracing Raven and stroking her arm.

Raven sighed in relief and gratitude. "Thank you," she said genuinely.

"It was good that you asked for me," Ava said, "you needed that."

"Tell me about it."

Ava used the cloths to clean Raven's pelvic area and grabbed a tissue from the nightstand to wipe her nose.

"Come on," Ava said, encouraging her to stand, "come lie down."

Raven sighed again and crawled into the bed, resting her head on the other pillow.

Ava then took Kurt from Erik and used the cloths and makeshift bath to clean him.

Raven looked over the baby with wide eyes as Ava had moments earlier.

"Oh my god," she said again, admiring him in disbelief.

Erik and Ava looked on happily for a moment.

"I better go get cleaned up," Ava said, referring to her own arms, and left for the bathroom.

Erik scooted closer to Raven and put his arm around her. Raven was silently crying at the sight of her son. Erik kissed her temple.

"Erik," she said softly, pointing her face toward him but avoiding eye-contact. "I'm sorry he's not yours."

"Raven," Erik said lovingly, and she looked up at him. "Look at him. He's perfect."

She smiled through her tears and looked back at the baby. Ava returned to the room and sat back down in front of Raven, smiling at the sight of her with her son.

"Ava," Raven said, shaking her head slowly as she looked at her. "I can't thank you enough."

Ava affectionately placed her hand on Raven's ankle. "You are _so_ welcome," she said, a single tear rolling down her cheek.

"_I _could _kiss_ you," Erik said frankly to Ava.

Raven laughed and flashed a huge smile at him, understanding exactly what he meant. Ava smiled widely at Erik, then back at Raven, grateful that she hadn't missed the events of the night.

Suddenly Azazel was next to them. He approached the bed calmly, observing the child in Raven's arms. Her smile faded, not sure what he would say.

"He's a teleporter," he simply stated, "the tail gives away that much."

"Do you…want to hold him?" Raven asked politely.

Azazel extended an arm and touched the baby's black hair. Just then, a loud crash came from the other end of the house and sent a rumble through the floor and walls, which made all four of them instinctively look toward the door. Azazel disappeared. Erik looked anxiously at Raven.

"Go," she said, nodding. "They need you."

He had a look of concern and reluctance on his face though he knew he had to leave her side temporarily. He leaned in and planted an impassioned kiss on her lips.

"You'll be with her?" he then said to Ava.

"Yes," she said sincerely.

Erik grabbed his helmet and hurried out of the room, making sure to shut the door behind him.

Ava moved to sit closer to Raven, placing her hand on her shoulder and briefly touching the baby's head. Raven reached over to turn on the lamp next to the bed. When Raven looked at Ava again, she realized Ava was crying and watching her.

"What is it?" she said, though she could tell they weren't tears of sadness.

"I forgot how much I missed you," Ava said softly. "You look so beautiful."

With their faces so close together, Ava couldn't resist but give Raven a delicate little kiss.

"I'm sorry," she said just afterward, "that was inappropriate."

Ava looked down for a moment. Raven leaned toward her, and holding the baby with one arm, placed her hand on Ava's neck and kissed her. It was a genuine, impassioned kiss, unlike their first one back in the kitchen at Charles's mansion. As Raven slowly pulled out of the kiss, her hand still on Ava's neck, Ava let out a little gasp of surprise.

"Raven," she said, her eyes still closed, "I think you've made me weak in the knees."

Raven smiled, comfortable and flattered by Ava's attraction to her.

"Stay with us for a while," Raven said, stroking the base of Ava's neck.

"Are you bribing me?" Ava asked in amusement and surprise.

"Maybe."

Ava laughed. "I hoped you'd say so." She leaned down and kissed the baby's forehead.

"Will you heal him?" Raven asked. "Make sure he's okay?"

"Of course," Ava nodded, and Raven handed him over.

Ava looked down at him lovingly for a moment and then closed her eyes as the healing began. Afterward, as she handed him back to Raven, she smiled and said, "As healthy as can be."

Touched and overwhelmed with hormonal emotions, Raven was now crying again.

"Ava," she said, "I can't tell you how much this means to me…I don't know how I would've done it without you."

Ava touched her cheek. "Raven, do you know how much it means to me that you asked for me to come here?"

Just then, they heard loud trampling sounds as if people were coming closer to the room. There were clear sounds of a struggle occurring somewhere in the hallway near the bedroom. Raven's eyes widened and she held her son closer to her chest. Ava put her arm around Raven and rested her other hand on Raven's arms, as if to cradle the baby with her, protecting them both.

"What exactly is going on out there?" Ava wondered out loud.

Just then, the loud footsteps drew closer, and it became clear that people were fighting on the roof. Ava held Raven closer as both of their hearts pounded. The sounds became louder, and with a loud crash, one of the men actually came through the ceiling onto the floor of their room, leaving a large hole above. Both women gasped and held the baby closer, but then, Erik followed the man, clearly having pushed him through with some large metal object. He finished him off and then turned toward Raven and Ava.

"Are you alright?" he said, out of breath, clearly concerned, having miscalculated how close he was to their room.

They both nodded. "We're okay," said Raven. "Watch out!" she added suddenly, noticing someone approaching Erik from behind.

Erik turned just as the man fired a bullet, which he attempted to deflect, but hit him anyway on account of being plastic. Erik dropped to his knees, clutching his stomach in shock and pain.

"No!" Raven shouted in disbelief.

"Don't think I forgot about _you_," the man said to Erik. It was clear that he wasn't like the others; he had just arrived on scene and was probably their leader.

"And you," he said, approaching Ava and Raven, sending a wave of fear through both of them. "I remember both of you, too. But who's this?" he said, looking at the baby.

Raven immediately recognized the man's voice as one of those who had participated in torturing her. She began to tremble, and Ava held her closer. Erik flung a knife at the man, but due to his injury, his aim was impaired and it hit the man's thigh.

"God _damn_ it," the guy said, aiming his gun at Erik again.

"No!" Raven said again, and quickly handed Ava the baby, and leapt out of the bed with a swift kick that sent the man's gun flying out of his hand.

"Your little abomination is next, you know," the man barked at Raven as he threw her to the ground.

"_Fuck_ you," she yelled back, and was able to pin him against the wall.

He used that opportunity to retrieve a glass knife from his pocket and drove it into her side, sending her to the ground. When she was down, he retrieved his gun and pointed it at her head. He pointed the bloody knife in Ava's direction.

"Ah-ah," he scolded Ava, who was trying to inch her way toward Erik. "Stay where you are. But, hey, go ahead and set that thing down. Just there on the edge of the bed would be great."

Ava glared at him, seething with hatred and disgust, not budging.

The man cocked the gun and moved so that it was inches from Raven, who was wincing in pain and hyperventilating.

"Well?" he said.

"I healed them all, you know," Ava said, setting the baby in the bed and standing so she was between him and the man, trying to draw the focus to herself instead. "Everyone in that compound who you hurt. I healed them all to their original health."

"Oh, you're _next_, bitch," the man said with a slight chuckle, feeling in control of the situation.

Just then, in the blink of an eye, Azazel appeared next to him and drove a sword through his stomach, sending him to the ground gasping.

Ava let out a sigh of relief and started toward Raven.

"Erik," she gasped, "help Erik."

Ava turned and saw that Erik was unconscious in a pool of blood from the stomach wound. She realized Raven was right; he needed healing immediately. She rushed to his side, her heart pounding, hoping it wasn't too late. She turned him over and studied the shot, and seeing no exit wound, quickly reached in for the bullet. The pain caused Erik to awaken with a loud yell.

"Sorry, sorry," she whispered, dropping the bloody bullet on the floor. She then quickly took his hand and healed him.

He breathed a sigh of relief, and Ava rushed to Raven's side, where Azazel was holding her, his hand over her stab wound. Ava's expression and sweaty brow showed her panic as she quickly grabbed Raven's hands and healed her.

Afterward, Ava couldn't help but pull her into a tight hug, her arms shaking.

"Kurt," Raven said, "where's Kurt?"

"Right here," Erik said, holding the baby at her side, "He's fine."

Raven took him into her arms eagerly and smiled at seeing him safe, then looked back up at Erik.

"Erik…" she said, happy to see him safe, too, and leaned forward to kiss him.

Some grunting sounds came from the man who had threatened them, as he writhed on the floor.

"Still alive?" Erik said, ready to bash his head in.

Ava stared, with the same look of sheer disgust on her face, then, seemingly expressionless, she stood and walked over to him, then kneeled next to him, studying him. Confused by her actions, Erik and Raven watched, as Ava calmly rolled up the man's sleeve and touched his arm.

"Ava?" Raven asked, trying to understand what she was doing. She looked at Erik, who shared her confusion, wondering if Ava was really about to heal the guy. Ava seemed to not hear her.

To their further surprise, the man indeed began to glow with Ava's healing energy, but a few seconds passed, and his large stab wound did not close. Suddenly, Ava's eyes flashed open – usually remaining closed for the extent of a healing – to reveal that they had gone pitch black.

"Oh my god…" Raven breathed, suddenly realizing what was about to happen. Erik was still confused.

The deep wound began to spread, causing the guy to wail in pain. New wounds began to open across his body, creating large blood stains on his clothes as he howled. Blood gushed from his nose and mouth, making his scream shift to a gurgle, and after just a few moments his noise ceased and he went limp, but Ava's grasp remained. Gashes appeared in his face. Every inch of him was bleeding.

"Jesus," Erik muttered.

Sensing that Ava wasn't stopping anytime soon, Raven handed Kurt to Erik and moved toward her, kneeling next to her.

"Raven, be careful!" Erik warned.

"She won't hurt me," Raven said. "Ava?"

No response.

"Ava? He's dead."

Blood bubbled in the man's throat as both of his lungs were deflated.

"Ava," Raven said again, touching her shoulder.

Feeling Raven's touch immediately snapped Ava out of it, and her eyes returned to normal as she withdrew her hand from the man's arm. She cowered away from him, and Raven held her from behind, as Ava had done for her.

"What…what did I do?" Ava asked, her hands and voice shaking.

"It's okay," Raven whispered. "It's okay. You saved us."

Ava looked at Raven, then back to the man.

"Oh god…oh god. I ruined everything."

"Nooo," Raven said comfortingly.

"No, I mean _him_. I ruined everything…every part of him. I let all the light in…oh, _god_."

"Ava, he deserved it," Raven said, stroking her still shaking arm.

"I didn't even know I could do that," Ava said, a tear rolling down her cheek. "What will Charles think?"

"Charles doesn't have to know," Erik chimed in.

"Are you okay?" Raven asked Ava.

Ava looked up at her, then over to Kurt in Erik's arms, and began quickly nodding.

"Yeah," she said. "Yeah, I'm alright."

It was very different for Raven to see Ava feeling so vulnerable. She usually seemed so composed and self-assured. She turned and hugged Raven, who held her and stroked her back. That night, Raven and Kurt shared a room with Ava, who suggested the idea so that she could help take care of the baby through the night. Erik was fully supportive of the idea, feeling that all three of them owed their lives to Ava, and wanting Raven to do whatever made her most comfortable.

In bed together that night, Raven and Ava were lightly making out. Though she was enjoying it so much, Ava had a bit of a Charles-moment and pulled out of the kiss, opening her eyes to say something.

"Tell me you're not just doing this out of gratitude," she said softly to Raven.

"No," Raven answered sincerely. "I mean, not _just_. I want to." She touched her face and they kissed again.

A few moments later, Kurt began to cry, and Ava walked over to his crib and picked him up, cradling him lovingly.

"What is it?" she said. "Do you need some attention over here?"

She smiled at him as if he were her own child as Raven looked on. Then, Ava closed her eyes, and her comforting healing energy glowed around Kurt. His crying ceased almost immediately, and she sat him back in the crib.

"Okay, now you're officially staying forever," Raven said, half-sarcastic.

Ava simply smiled and sat on the edge of the bed.

"You could if you wanted to, you know," Raven said, touching her arm.

Ava looked down. "That's tempting, but I think it might break Charles's heart if I left." She paused, looking to the side. "I care about him so much," she admitted.

"You love him, don't you?" Raven asked sweetly.

"Oh," Ava said with a little smile and a headshake, "no, I can't say that, much to his disappointment. Romantic love is a thing of the past for me."

"Ava, that's ridiculous," Raven said frankly, moving a lock of blonde hair out of her face. "You deserve to feel love as much as anyone does. And not just receiving. You deserve to feel what it's like to _give_ love."

Ava smiled, touched by Raven's words.

"And you'd be a lot happier if you let yourself say 'yes' to that question," Raven added.

Ava's eyelids and nose had taken on a redder shade, and a buildup of tears glistened at the corners of her eyes.

"Do you love Erik?" she responded.

"_So_ much," Raven responded softly, shaking her head slowly to emphasize the extent of her sincerity.

The baby cried again.

"He must be hungry," Ava said, standing to get him and hand him to Raven, who held him at her breast to nurse.

"Where did the name come from - Kurt?" Ava asked, watching.

"I had it in my head for a while," Raven answered, still watching the baby, "I just never told anyone."

"It's lovely," Ava said.

The next morning when Raven awoke, she saw Ava lying there and watching her. Ava smiled to see her eyes open.

"Good morning," Raven said.

"You were right," Ava said in a faint whisper.

Raven furrowed her brow a bit, wondering what she meant.

"I do love him," Ava said just as faintly. It was the first time she had said so out loud.

"I know," Raven whispered back.

Ava swallowed. "I'm afraid it might be too late to say anything to him, though," she said. "I'm not even sure how I would…"

"Maybe you won't have to," Raven offered.

Ava smiled. She stayed with them for three more nights, and she and Raven engaged in more romantic activities. Ava wanted to make sure Raven wouldn't feel like she was being unloyal to Erik, but Raven was quick to explain that the two of them had an understanding. Ava and Raven grew closer than ever before.

On the fourth night, though, Erik was sitting in his bed fighting insomnia when he thought he heard a hushed discussion in the hallway. At first, he decided to ignore it, but was then uneasy when he recognized Ava's voice, seemingly speaking in a serious tone. He got out of bed and threw his robe on to step into the hall and ease his curiosity. Upon stepping outside, he saw Ava and Azazel at the end of the hall, and realized that Ava might be about to leave.

"What's going on here," he said, approaching them.

Ava turned, surprised to see him, not sure what to say.

"Does Raven know you're leaving?" Erik asked.

Ava looked down. "Erik, it's better this way. Trust me."

"Bullshit!" he yelled back. "You want to break her heart?"

Ava's eyes were glistening again. Erik's yell had woken up Kurt, as evidenced by a sudden wail coming from Raven's bedroom. Ava closed her eyes and sighed, knowing Raven was about to join the scene.

"What's going on out here?" Raven said, emerging from the room, rocking Kurt in a shoulder sling.

Ava glanced over at her, looking guilty, while Erik turned to her with a sigh of relief and remorse on his face.

"What is it?" Raven said. "Ava, are you leaving?" she asked, noticing Azazel was so close to her.

Ava sadly approached her, and when she got close enough, Raven realized tears were flowing down Ava's face.

"Ava!" she exclaimed, concerned. Ava half-embraced her, careful to avoid squishing Kurt.

"Raven, I'm sorry. I've always hated goodbyes."

"Ava," Raven said comfortingly, hugging her back, "this isn't goodbye. Not forever."

Ava stood up straighter to look her in the face.

"You're welcome to come back anytime," Raven added.

Ava kissed her, relieved that she wasn't begging her to stay.

"I'll always cherish this time we had together," Ava said.

"Me too," Raven whispered. "Say hi to Charles for me," she said with a smile.

Ava smiled back and kissed Raven's cheek one last time before heading over to Azazel. She smiled at Raven as she took his hand, more tears rolling down her cheeks, and the two of them disappeared.

Erik walked over to Raven and put his arm around her.

"You alright?" he asked softly.

"Yeah," she said, nodding slightly and looking down at Kurt, who had fallen back to sleep.

Erik pulled her closer and kissed her temple.

When Ava and Azazel appeared back in Charles's mansion, the house was silent and dark, though Ava could see a little light coming from a lounge room. She thanked Azazel, who nodded and promptly disappeared. She then headed down the hall. Charles emerged from the lounge, having heard the sounds of Azazel teleporting.

"You're back," he said upon seeing her.

"And you're up late," she observed.

"You gave us quite a scare there, when we woke up and couldn't find you," he said.

"Oh, yes, I'm sorry about that. It was urgent," she said, hoping he wasn't angry with her for not getting in touch.

"So I saw," he responded. "Come sit," he said, inviting her into the lounge, having missed her company. "Unless you're off to bed," he added.

She shook her head with a smile and followed him into the lounge, where she took a seat on one of the couches.

"I assumed you'd be able to locate me," she said in further explanation.

"I did," he said. "How's Raven?"

"Oh, she's wonderful," Ava said, beaming a little. "She sends her love. Have you seen him?"

"No, actually, I haven't," he said.

"Oh, Charles, you must. You must look. He's absolutely breathtaking," she said, leaning forward as if to encourage him to read her mind.

He lifted his finger to his temple and tapped into the images of Kurt that Ava was remembering, and was genuinely surprised to see what he looked like. He was also able to see Raven cradling him, which made him smile a bit. Since he was seeing Raven from Ava's point of view, he also felt the immense joy she had experienced at being reunited with her, and became surprised she had returned so soon.

"Who is the father?" he asked upon finishing.

"Azazel."

He lifted his eyebrows, having not expected that response. "Are they a couple?" he asked.

"No. She and Erik are still. He was by her side through it all. They care about each other so much."

Charles nodded, happy to hear that Raven was taken care of.

"It sounds like you had a nice visit," he said.

"Yes," she confirmed. "Though the house was in the midst of a battle when I arrived."

"I'm sure they were glad to have _you_, then," he mused.

Ava gave a faint smile and looked down, recalling the events of that night.

"Everything alright?" he asked, noticing the look of worry on her face.

She looked up at him with a little sigh, her expression pained as if she were about to tell him she was dying.

"Ava," Charles said, alarmed, and took her hand. "What is it?"

"I have to talk to you about something else that happened that night," she said reluctantly. She swallowed and looked to the side as she began to speak.

"There was a man who came into the room. He threatened to kill Raven and Kurt, and injured her and Erik. I felt hatred and anger toward him like I haven't in ages… Azazel took him out, and I was able to heal them. After I did, though, it was like something came over me. It was like nothing I've ever felt before. I just walked over to his body and touched him and…" she paused.

"You can tell me," Charles encouraged.

"I let all the light in," Ava said, repeating her own line. "It was awful. Anywhere there was an organ or opening I just…destroyed him. I was using my healing energy, but I didn't even know I could do that."

"Do you regret it?" Charles asked.

Ava looked at his face briefly, then back down. "I don't," she said softly.

"It sounds like you do," he said.

"After what he did and what he wanted to do, I can't say I regret it," she explained. "I just…I couldn't stop wondering what you would think. I was afraid you might….if you knew that my abilities weren't just good…." A single tear dripped down her cheek.

"Ava," he said comfortingly, "it is our choices, not our abilities, that determine whether we are good. I don't think differently of you," he said, touching her face, which caused her to close her eyes, pushing more tears out.

"Besides," he added, "it sounds like you didn't have much control over it. I can help you learn to control it." He rubbed her hand.

"I missed you, Charles," she breathed, and leaned forward to embrace him.

"Oh…Ava," he said, returning the hug. "I missed you as well."

Ava held him tightly and buried her face into his shoulder. Her seeking comfort in him surprised him, and he rubbed her back.

"It's okay, Ava," he said, attempting to comfort her but surprised by how long the hug was lasting.

After a few more moments, he briefly tapped into her mind just enough to feel her emotions rather than read her actual thoughts. There, he found a mix of emotions, but the two most prominent, much to his surprise, were relief and serenity. The latter surprised him the most, because it seemed to originate from the feeling of him holding her. He leaned back a bit to get her to lift her head, which she did, and he made eye-contact with her for a moment, a question on his face.

"Ava…" he started, confused.

She stared back at him, hoping he already knew the truth.

"Why were you so concerned about what I would think?" he asked.

"Charles… Tell me you've read my mind," she pleaded.

The questioning on his face increased a bit, but he did as he was told and tapped into her mind again, further this time, listening to her thoughts, and he realized there was a better word for what she was feeling that he couldn't ascertain from just her emotions: love. He felt the extent of her love for him, and gasped out a little as he did. Having spent the better part of the previous year pushing his own feelings away, he was taken aback at the knowledge that she felt just as strongly as he did.

"Ava…" he said again, a single tear rolling down his cheek.

"Charles," she whispered with a little smile.

With another breath, he leaned forward and eagerly kissed her, still in disbelief of what was happening. She kissed back, wrapping her arms around his head. When there was a pause in the kiss, Ava looked at Charles to see that he was crying.

"I'm sorry," he said, wiping his eyes and smiling.

She smiled back, climbed into his lap, and embraced him again.

"I thought this would never happen," he said, his head against her chest.

"I know," she said, and kissed his temple.

"How long have you felt this way?"

"I can't say for sure. It was Raven who helped me admit that I did."

He smiled, briefly grateful to his sister for her involvement in his current happiness. Ava ran her hand through is hair and he resumed kissing her. She was surprised when the kissing became more heated as Charles began kissing her neck, and moreso when he delicately ran his fingers up her thigh. The sensation made her breathe out a little puff of air and her eyes fluttered shut.

"Maybe we should find some more privacy," he suggested.

She smiled at him, surprised by his forwardness, having not expected him to reveal his sensual side so soon.

"Am I to understand that you're alright with us being intimate now?"

"Yes," he breathed eagerly. "Unless you find it inappropriate?"

"Charles," she said, slightly amused, touching his cheek. "You know how long I've wanted that. I've _always_ been attracted to you." She kissed him again. "I _could_ just close the door," she added, slightly mischievous.

"Oh," he said somewhat awkwardly. "I was thinking we'd need a bed….I've never actually-"

She cut him off by placing a finger over his lips.

"Alright," she said sweetly. She drew her knees up so that her feet were off the floor and held on to him. "Take me to the bedroom."

He was actually grateful for that little gesture as he headed out of the lounge and down the hall, when he realized that "carrying" her to the room was much more romantic than if she were pushing him there.

After they had entered his room and shut the door behind them, he resumed kissing her. After a moment, she spoke again.

"I want you to know that I didn't have expectations for tonight," she said, looking into his eyes. "There's no pressure to do anything you're not ready to do."

"I appreciate that, Ava, but I want this," he said.

She smiled and kissed him again, unbuttoning his shirt as she did. A little while later, he got up onto the bed, sitting up against a pillow, and she took that opportunity to undress, removing her tanktop and shorts in front of him.

"You are…_stunning_," he said when she had come over to the bed in nothing but her panties.

She straddled him and looked into his eyes for a moment before she resumed kissing him, running her hands through is hair as she did. She had figured that the position would probably be the easiest for Charles, and he didn't seem to object.

"Can you feel _anything_?" she asked as she removed his trousers.

"Some of the stimulation carries over to nerves above my waist," he explained. "But unfortunately, no, nothing below it."

Both of them naked, she re-straddled him and caressed his cheek.

"I do still want this, Ava," he said in reassurance.

"Me too," she whispered.

She took it very slow, lowering herself onto him and relishing the sensations. He focused on enjoying the sight, but since he had no control over his stamina and had gone an extremely long time without sex, the lovemaking didn't last long. He was somewhat embarrassed, but she reassured him that it had felt amazing. Afterward, they fell asleep holding each other.

When Charles awoke the next morning, he found Ava with her head propped up, watching him sleep, seemingly in deep thought. She smiled at him.

"That's a nice way to wake up," he said. "Something on your mind?"

"Actually, yes. I've realized something," she said. "I know you well enough to know that you wouldn't hold it against me…what I told you last night."

He gave a little nod, wondering where she was going with the topic.

"The reason I felt so uneasy about you after it happened was because it gave me an idea; I just hadn't realized it yet."

She paused and he looked mildly confused, still wondering where she was going.

"Charles," she said, soft but determined. "I don't mean to give you false hope, but I want to try to heal you again."

He blinked, having not expected that.

"Ava," he said. "It didn't work…"

"Yes, I know, but now that I know what else I can do with my abilities, I think it could," she said, and paused to gather her words, having spent most of the morning thinking about saying them. "I think that if I could reinjure your nerves in a way that would allow me to heal them properly, I could fix you."

His eyes widened. "You mean…I'd walk again?"

"If I'm right, yes."

His eyes widened again and he glanced around the room, not knowing what to make of this proposition.

"Of course, the process would be very painful," she admitted. "But I hope you will let me try."

He looked at her, still not sure what to say, and she touched his cheek.

"Not right now," she added, not wanting him to feel like he had to make an immediate decision. "Just think about it."

"Are you sure you have that level of control over it?" he asked.

"No, I'm not sure," she answered honestly. "I'm not sure of anything. But, now that I know how it feels to use the healing energy for that purpose, I don't believe it will be difficult to reproduce."

He nodded a bit, considering the information.

"You can trust me not to kill you, Charles, if that's what you're asking," she added with a smirk.

He smiled back and looked down for a moment. Then, with a sigh of determination, he looked back at her face.

"Ava, yes, I want you to try," he said, his eyes slightly red.

She smiled and touched his cheek again and kissed him.

Knowing that she would probably need to remove scar tissue in order to allow the nerves to reconnect, she gathered some surgical tools from the lab, but avoided telling Hank what they were doing. She suggested to Charles that he could be unconscious for the procedure, but he declined, reasoning that he would be able to let her know if it was working.

"Charles, before we go through with this, I need your word about two things," she said as they both sat in the bed.

"Alright," he nodded.

"If this doesn't work, I need you to know that I only had the best intentions, and I hope that the bond between us will not suffer-"

"Ava," he said, touching her arm, cutting her off. He shook his head slightly. "Nothing will change between us. It absolutely means the world to me that you've had this idea at all."

She gave him a little smile before continuing.

"Also," she said. "If this _does_ work, you must promise that you will not feel indebted to me."

She stroked his cheek, her tone very sincere.

"I'm doing this because I _love you_," she whispered. "If it works, that's all the reward I need."

He smiled back, touched at hearing her say those words for the first time.

"I love you too, Ava," he said. "I promise."

For the procedure, he lied on his stomach on the bed, with towels beneath and beside him. Ava also laid towels above and below the scar, which she studied and caressed with her finger.

Straddling him with her hands on either side of the scar, she spoke.

"I'm going to connect with you now without changing anything," she said. "Just so I can look around."

"Alright," he said, trying not to feel too nervous.

Ava closed her eyes, and the area of Charles's back around the scar glowed with her white light. She looked as "closely" as she could, and found that she was easily able to distinguish between the blood vessels, tissue, and nerves, just as she had suspected. Through her healing energy, she could "see" the composition of the body with much more clarity than her eyes. She focused on the area of his original injury, "zooming in" on it. She was able to make out the severed nerves and little bundles of scar tissue. She withdrew her connection, satisfied.

"Alright," she said. "Charles, are you ready?"

"Yes," he said, taking a breath, though he wasn't sure if he was really ready.

She touched his shoulder affectionately, and then returned her hand to his lower back and shut her eyes again. She re-connected with the healing energy and focused on the first area of scar tissue, where she carefully made the first division. She was able to clearly distinguish the dividing line between that tissue and the healthy tissue around it, and slowly separated the two. Since she was working below his waist, Charles didn't feel any pain yet. She then gently created a small slit in his skin just below the scar, so she could withdraw the chunk of tissue. Opening her eyes, she used the surgical tweezers to guide it out, trying not to become distracted at the sight of blood leaking out of the wound and running over the sides of Charles's hips. With the scar tissue out of the way, she was free to manipulate that cluster of nerves, gently asking them to reconnect with each other. This action sent a small wave of tingling sensation through Charles's left side, including the upper part of his left leg.

"Ava," he said in disbelief, "I felt that."

"I know," she said. "I'm sorry, but it's going to get _much_ worse."

"It's alright," he said. "It's alright; it's working."

Moving farther right, Ava was now confident enough to work on the area directly under his scar – his spinal cord. She removed the scar itself from his skin and withdrew the underlying scar tissue in the same way. She knew that manipulating his spinal cord was going to initially send a wave of pain through him like nothing he had ever felt, because, as she had suspected, she was going to have to sever it to create a clean connection, since scar tissue had grown within the cord. She paused.

"Charles," she said. "Hold onto something. And try not to move."

He grasped the headboard and took a deep breath. Ava first severed the section of the cord that he wouldn't feel, and removed that clump with her tweezers. Then, she moved up to the active cord, where she tried not to sever it too slowly. Charles cried out at the feeling: it was like fire rushing up his spine and into his arms and neck.

"Haaaaaah!" he yelled, grasping the headboard and burying his face.

"I know, dear, I'm so sorry," she said, trying not to lose her concentration. She quickly grabbed the tweezers, and this time he felt the withdrawal.

"Oh god," he said in disbelief at the extent of the pain. "I might pass out."

The towels were increasingly drenched in his blood. Ava tried to work quickly in asking the cord to rejoin itself. This required it to stretch slightly, which made Charles cry out again.

"Almost there," she said in sympathy. She joined the two ends of the cord together, gently re-growing them into each other without any scar tissue.

Suddenly, his pain gave way to a powerful wave of sensation that passed through his entire spine, down to his waist, and for the first time since his original injury, he became aware of the feeling of his legs, though there was still some lingering numbness.

"Oh my god!" he shouted. "It worked! I can feel my legs!"

"I know," Ava said happily. "I'm afraid I'm not quite finished yet, and you're going to feel the rest."

Charles laughed a bit in excitement, though he could now feel the pain from the open wound where Ava was working. She still had to remove scar tissue from the right side of the wound, which took several slicings and withdrawals, each of which sent Charles's face into his pillow in agony.

Normally, hearing him in such pain would've made overwhelmed Ava with sympathy, but she remained focused on her task, exhilarated at the fact that it was working the way she had imagined it would. When she had finally finished reconnecting each nerve in the area, she closed up the wound in his skin, much to his relief. The area now looked and felt as if it had never been injured at all.

"All finished," she said, opening her eyes.

Charles rolled over in the bed, amazed at the fact that he could feel the entirety of his legs as he did.

"Ava," he said, "I can't believe this."

"Let's check," she said, and slowly ran her fingers down his leg, first on the outside, then the inside, both of which made Charles laugh.

"That tickles," he said in happiness and disbelief, tears dripping down his cheeks.

Ava touched his face briefly, also crying, and then stood from the bed.

"Want to try and stand?" she asked, standing close to him to help him with the task.

He nodded eagerly and moved to get off the bed.

"Your muscles are very weak, Charles, take it easy," she said, her hand on his shoulder as he tried to stand. She helped him off the bed.

As his weight shifted onto each bony leg and he stood, they began to shake under the pressure, and his knees buckled a little. Still, he laughed with delight at the fact that he could feel every part of it. He grasped Ava's arms as she held him to keep him upright.

"You did it, Ava," he said, still in disbelief.

She smiled and pulled him into a hug.

"I don't know how well I'm going to keep that promise about not owing you anything," he said with a laugh of disbelief.

Ava laughed as well, and helped him resume sitting on the bed. As she did, he kissed her passionately, pulling her onto him on the bed, relishing being able to feel himself "responding" to her touch. She pulled out of the kiss to look at him as if to say, "already?"

"I want…to feel you," he said breathily. Then, with a laugh, he added, "Sorry if that sounded a bit creepy."

Ava smiled. "No, it didn't," she said, kissing him again and amusing herself by imagining how surprised he might be if he read her mind – or felt her panties – to discover just how un-creepy it was.

He tried to reposition so that he was on top of her, but she stopped him.

"I don't want you to over-exert yourself, Charles," she said, concerned, but sweet.

"Would it matter? You could just heal me if I did," he responded.

She looked on with her signature smile, and he second-guessed himself.

"I'm sorry. I don't mean to take your healing power for granted. After all you've done for me," he said, stroking her hair.

A little puff of a laugh escaped her nose. "Charles, you're not taking it for granted any more than you'd take my eyesight for granted by trusting me not to run into a closed door," she said with a smirk. "But, just because I can heal you doesn't mean I don't mind if you feel pain."

Instead of responding, he held her face in his hands for a moment and then kissed her again, amazed at her consistent ability to say stunningly beautiful things at the drop of a hat. He silently promised himself never to take _that_ ability for granted.

"I think I should be on top again," she said plainly.

He nodded and managed to scoot himself into position against the headboard like the previous night. Ava straddled him, running her fingertips up his thighs as she did.

"That feels amazing," he said with a shaky sigh.

She moved her hand up into his boxers, which drove him so wild with sensation that he gasped and nearly hyperventilated.

"Is this too fast? Are you alright?" she asked, stroking his hair.

"No, uh, yes, I'm fine," he said, "I'm sorry, I think I'd forgotten how powerful it could be."

"How's this?" she said, moving her hand outside of his boxers and lightly rubbing.

A sharp breath of air escaped his lips again as he nodded. "Oh, god, yes, everything just feels wonderful."

As she continued to stroke him, she leaned in and kissed his neck near his year.

"This may be even more tragic than last night," he said with a laugh in self-deprecation.

"Don't say that," she said, looking at him. "Last night was lovely. And of course there's no pressure of any kind."

"That's good news," he said with a strange tone to his voice, "because I actually just finished."

Ava smiled, stroked his cheek, and kissed him.

"That's alright," she said. "I'm just so happy it worked."

He smiled and hugged her. "Thank you, Ava," he said softly.

As she was holding him against her chest, a sudden streak of humor crept over him.

"I do promise to successfully fuck you some day," he said.

"Charles!" she said, pulling back to look at him in shock and surprise, laughing.

"I'm sorry," he said, also laughing and shaking his head, "I know that was a bit crass."

"No, that's quite alright, I'm just surprised!" she said. Then, when her laughter had calmed, she added, "And we have all the time in the world for that."

In the weeks that followed, she helped him re-learn how to walk. He used a walker and regularly stretched his legs in addition to strength exercises. Fortunately, he didn't have to worry much about taking breaks for healing since Ava could heal his muscles whenever he felt sore. He did have to take breaks to re-energize of course, and to his dismay, occasionally had to hop back into the wheelchair if he needed to get somewhere quickly. Still, he was elated at being able to walk again, and all the other residents of his home were in disbelief whenever they saw him on one of his laps around the mansion.


	4. Pulse

**Chapter 4: Pulse**

_ ABOUT A MONTH LATER_

Charles waited until the late evening to surprise Ava. He had been practicing walking without his walker more than she realized, and he was now confident enough to walk down the hall to her room unaided –a task he hoped would lead to a second surprise.

After the first two mishaps, he had decided to take sex off the menu for a while. Like most men, he didn't want to keep trying and failing, so he decided to "fly solo" for a while, so to speak. While he was working on the strength of his legs, he had also been re-conditioning himself to the feeling of sexual pleasure, so that a few simple touches wouldn't put him over the edge. In a way, it was like being an adolescent teenager again. Of course, Ava didn't officially know about that, either, but she had suspected as much.

Through some unspoken understanding, the two of them had not yet begun sharing a bedroom. Though neither of them had even started to address the topic, both of them knew it would feel odd for a couple who wasn't yet figuratively "sleeping together" to start literally sleeping together. Plus, there was so much sexual tension between them, one was sure to lead to the other, and Charles had clearly not been ready for that.

Until now, at least, or so he hoped. He felt his heart pounding as he walked slowly and steadily to her bedroom in the dark, quiet mansion. He felt confident but nervous, but above all, determined.

After placing one foot in front of the other enough times to arrive at her door, he took a breath and knocked.

"Who is it?" came her sweet Parisian accent.

"Charles," he said simply.

"Come in!"

He opened the door and stepped inside with a smile on his face. She turned to look at him, wearing nothing but a lacy nightshirt and panties, and her eyes immediately widened.

"Oh my God, Charles!" she said. "You walked here!" Her mouth was agape.

He continued up to her, maintaining eye-contact. Once in front of her, he boldly but nonchalantly placed his hands on her waist.

"I wanted to surprise you," he said.

"Well, I'm very surprised!" she said, and placed her hands on his face as she kissed him.

He moved his hands up the sides of her silky tanktop as he did, sending a tingle down her spine.

"This is a lovely blouse," he said softly, his face close to hers, letting his fingers caress the sensitive sides of her breasts.

Ava looked deep into his eyes and drew in a slow breath, having to stop herself from biting her lip. She'd been nothing but angelically patient with him for the last several weeks, but she had been achingly horny for him almost every day.

"Something tells me you had another surprise in mind," she said.

In response, he pulled her against him and passionately kissed her, making his intentions crystal clear.

Her breath trembled when they paused again, and she resumed kissing him with vigor as she hastily began to unbutton his shirt. He liked her eagerness and smiled within the kiss.

Once unbuttoned, he removed his shirt and let it drop to the floor. He undid his belt and, out of habit, sat on the bed to remove his pants, leaving his boxers on for now. Ava took the opportunity to stand just in front of him, her knees straddling his, and seductively removed her top.

Charles ran his fingers up the back of her thigh and cupped her ass.

"Are you smirking at me?" she said, sarcastically defensive.

He let out a breathy chuckle. "Your enthusiasm is _so damned sexy_," he responded with bold eyes.

She raised her eyebrows as if to say _is that so? _and then, in one swift motion, removed his hand from her ass and placed it directly on her crotch so he could feel the dampness of her panties.

A little puff of surprise escaped his lips as his and he stared up at her for a moment, not knowing what to say, feeling himself throbbing in response. Charles was a slut in his own right, of course, but he'd never been with a woman as unabashed as Ava, who he also happened to be madly in love with. The combination was equally passionate and exhilarating.

"Well," he breathed and pulled her on top of him on the bed, kissing her again, both caressing each other.

Soon, their underwear was shed too, and both naked, Charles had moved on top of Ava as they continued making out.

She paused for a moment to look up at him, stroked his hair, and smiled, relishing the moment.

"I love you, Charles," she said.

"I love _you_, Ava," he said back, somewhat surprised.

"Ready?" she asked, mock-coyly.

"God, yes," he breathed.

Then, she shifted her position beneath him so she could spread her legs, her knees bent.

Charles took another breath and gently thrust into her, and his eyes instantly fluttered shut. The smooth, taught, slippery sensation of her surrounding him was like nothing he could've prepared himself for. He remembered how sex felt, of course, but he'd let himself forget how much he missed it. Being paralyzed, he'd had no choice but to accept that physical sexual pleasure was something he didn't need to lead a fulfilled life. But now, to have it again, and to feel it as intensely as ever, he thought he might die of ecstasy.

Barely thrusting, his breathing had become labored, his eyes tensely closed. Ava had let out a pleasurable moan with his first thrust, and now watched his face as he basked in the feeling of fucking her – _finally_. She placed her hands on his ass, encouraging him to thrust harder, which he did, eliciting rhythmic moans of pleasure from her, as he kissed her again. He wanted to say something, to whisper something, to tell her how amazing and mind-blowing it was, but he had no words. Every fiber of his being could do nothing but _feel_. And so, holding her close, he thrust and felt and breathed.

He became aware of Ava moving her hand between them, and subsequently heard her moans become more powerful, but had to open his eyes to realize that she had begun rubbing herself. She wasn't about to let this glorious sex _go_ by without _coming_. Charles realized he was being a bit of a selfish lover by having neglected that part of her anatomy, but he was so consumed by his own pleasure, the thought barely registered. Plus, she clearly had it covered.

"Haaa-aaa," he let out in a shaky gasp a few minutes later, as he felt his orgasm approaching. "Oh, God…"

Ava had been intensely rubbing, and was also nearing climax.

"I don't want this to end," he said, looking into her eyes, semi-apologetic.

She smiled up at him.

"Don't think of it as the end," she said in a whisper. "Just enjoy it."

He kissed her again and began pumping faster, bring them both to a trembling climax.

Afterward, they lied in each other's arms, panting and sweaty. Since the moisture of their skin was making them stick together uncomfortably, Ava rolled off of him and onto her back on the mattress with a sigh of delight.

Charles rolled onto his side to look at her and she did the same, smiling when they were face-to-face. He brushed a few blond strands out of her face, looking thoughtful, and placed his hand on her cheek, clearly about to say something.

In that moment, she became afraid that he was going to say the wrong thing – something expressing gratitude. She didn't want to be lying next to a thankful, grateful person right now. Her entire adult life had been full of grateful people. What she _wanted_ was to be lying next to her hot boyfriend, who fully understood that she loved sex as much as he did. But, what Ava wanted someone to say in an intimate moment was often somewhat disconnected with what they ended up saying. So, as she'd grown accustomed, she steeled herself against his next comment, ready to not be annoyed if he did express thanks.

"You are _so_ beautiful," he said earnestly.

She blinked in surprise and relief, touched and almost wondering if he'd read her mind.

"I thought so from the first time I saw you," he said, still stroking her hair. "Gorgeous."

She smiled and thought about the first time she had met Charles, when she had seen him watching her from across the cellar. His big, blue puppy dog eyes had won her over almost instantly. Of course, she had been preoccupied at the time.

"You're not so bad, yourself," she said with a little smirk and kissed him.

The next day, over at Azazel's mansion, Raven was getting her hump on as well. In the midst of her moaning, she paused to look at her arms draped around his shoulders, their heaving chests nearly touching, their legs intertwined. Something about the contrast of her dark blue skin against his bright red skin got her off even more.

She'd been visiting Azazel's bedroom more often in the last few weeks. There was something about sex with him that consistently felt new and exciting and daring, especially since he wasn't usually one for long or deep conversations. He was perfectly ripped and amazingly skilled, too, which didn't hurt.

And since Erik didn't even seem to bat an eye when she slept with Azazel, she couldn't see any reason not to enjoy herself now that she wasn't pregnant anymore.

After their romp in the sheets, she crossed through the bathroom of the enormous master suite to remove a still-sleeping Kurt from his crib in the adjoining unoccupied bedroom.

Out in the hallway, Erik was just entering his own room when he saw Raven start to emerge from Azazel's. He paused to watch for a moment and saw her leaving with Kurt in her arms, then stalled when Azazel grabbed her arm and embraced her for a final passionate kiss. Erik couldn't help but notice how much they looked like a family. Of course, biologically, that's what they were. But there, standing in the doorway all three together, something seemed very warm and fuzzy about them. In that moment, Erik felt a little pang of…jealousy? What was it? Maybe part of it was jealousy, but the main thing Erik felt was fear – fear of losing Raven, coupled with an underlying thought that she might be better off with Azazel anyway. He sighed and pushed it away, continuing into his room.

Raven came in a few seconds later, as he had suspected. She looked happy.

"You don't have to take him with you," Erik said, regarding Kurt. "I wouldn't mind if you left him here with me."

"Oh?" she said, a little caught off guard by the comment. "It's alright. I think Azazel likes to see him more than he admits."

She placed Kurt in the crib next to her side of their bed.

"Right," he muttered, and then held out an envelope to her. "You got mail today."

"Oh," she said, taking it. "This is from Charles," she said in confusion and surprise as she read the front.

She tore open the envelope and unfolded the letter inside. It carried the news of Charles's recovery, his progress in re-learning to walk, and explained how Ava had healed him and had been there every step of the way.

Erik watched Raven read the letter and saw her expression become increasingly disbelieving, until she was cupping her mouth with her hand, her eyes were tearing up, and she'd had to sit on the bed to finish reading.

"Bad news?"he said softly.

She shook her head slightly, her focus still on the paper.

"Oh, my god!" she said when she had finished, and stared at it for a few seconds longer.

She wordlessly handed it to him, still staring at it as if to confirm that it really existed. He curiously took the paper and quickly started reading, raising his eyebrows as he got to the important points.

"Well, that's good news," he said, and Raven though there might've been a hint of shakiness in his voice.

"Yeah," she said, nodding.

Erik re-folded the letter and placed it on his nightstand.

"I guess we'll never really stop owing Ava," he said.

Raven shook her head. "I can't believe it."

Later that night, Erik found himself alone in their bedroom. Again. Raven was gone, and the crib was empty. He sighed. This was the fourth night that week that Raven hadn't been around at "bedtime." Not that they had an official bedtime, but midnight was usually when the house became pretty dormant. He couldn't help but think about what he had said to her when he'd first proposed the idea of an open relationship – that he wouldn't mind who she slept with, as long as she came back to their bed eventually. She did usually come back eventually, though it would be in the wee hours of the morning when he had already dozed off. A few nights before, she had failed to return until morning, when she casually apologized and, with a shrug, said she accidentally fell asleep and slept in.

He wasn't sure what to think. On the one hand, he really didn't mind if Raven wanted to have sex with Azazel. On the other, he couldn't shake the suspicion that it was becoming _more_ than sex – for Raven at least, if not both of them. And there'd been another condition to their arrangement: if, at any point, one of them became uncomfortable with the relationship being open, they would immediately close it indefinitely. But was "uncomfortable" really the word for what he was feeling? He thought it sounded pretty accurate.

He sighed again. He knew it was true. Raven spending so much time with Azazel – the father of her child – was making Erik feel insecure about the relationship. Every time he found his room empty at night, some kind of prick of negative emotions hit him in the stomach. And this time, that prick was starting to swell. He poured himself a scotch. The kid; there was another reason he couldn't figure out how he felt or what to do. With Kurt in the picture, he felt almost selfish for wishing she'd see Azazel less – there it was. He had admitted it to himself; he wanted her to see Azazel less frequently. But he had a gnawing feeling that she wouldn't respond well to that request, because, deep down, he also suspected that he'd already lost her. It figured as much, or so he thought, because anyone who loved Erik Lensherr was bound to either get over it or disappear, right?

He rubbed his temples, then sipped his scotch in the dark for a while before turning on his lamp to read. He decided to be awake this time when she got back.

A few hours later, when Raven quietly entered Erik's bedroom, she was surprised to see his lamp on, but was still smiling over her time with Azazel. She was cradling Kurt, whose ability to sleep through the night was turning out to be a god-send, and was in a happy state of self-reflection about her current place in life when she realized that something about Erik being up and reading at this time made her uneasy. As she set Kurt in his crib, she looked over Erik and pushed the thought away, noting that he seemed calm and normal.

"Couldn't sleep?" she said, scooting onto the bed next to him.

He set his newspaper on his nightstand.

"Actually, I waited for you," he said, looking at her.

She blinked and her uneasy feeling instantly returned.

"Oh," she said.

"Starting to seem like you don't live in here anymore," he said.

She became instantly concerned, a flicker of worry passing over her eyes.

"Do you think it's too much? Am I…with him too much?" she asked, trying to ascertain his mood regarding the subject.

"Tell me what _you_ think," he said, his voice unangry but firm.

"I…don't know," she said nervously. "I didn't think I was doing something wrong…"

He sighed again, seeing that he wasn't going to get anything out of her by being vague. He decided to go straight for the punch, in his typical style.

"Raven, the thing is," he shook his head a bit and looked down, gathering his words. "If you're thinking you want to pursue a relationship with him, there's no need to drag it out. Tell me now." He looked up at her. "Rip the bandage off."

The last bit sounded a bit more pathetic out loud than it had in his head, but he maintained a straight face. Besides, it was the truth.

"Erik," Raven said, shocked and hurt. "Are you saying you think I'm…leaving you for him?"

"Is that so ridiculous?"

"Erik!" Raven said again, leaned forward, and flung her arms around him.

She tightly hugged him for a few moments, burying her face in his shoulder.

"I'm sorry," she said, then pulled back to look at him. "I never meant to hurt you."

"I know," he said, still unsure whether her hugging him meant that he was right or wrong.

"I'll stop seeing him," she said, touching his cheek and answering his question.

"I wasn't going to ask you to stop," he responded with a slight head shake.

"You don't have to," she said, still looking concerned, and kissed him.

"Did you really think you were losing me?" she asked afterward.

He studied her face for a moment and then gave an ironic little smirk.

"I thought I'd lost you," he said softly.

She hugged him again and cuddled up into his arms.

"I'm so sorry, Erik," she whispered, her cheek pressed to his chest.

He kissed her head.

"You don't need to apologize," he said softly.

"I love you so much," she said, continuing as if she hadn't heard him. "I'm yours."

He wrapped his arms around her, holding her against him, and they drifted to sleep in each other's arms.

Raven awoke to sunlight pouring over her face from the window, where she could tell from droplets on the glass that it had been raining. She basked in the happy feeling that was lying on Erik's chest in the pretty light of morning, and then shifted carefully to look up at him. He was still asleep. She smiled at his face, feeling awful for how she had inadvertently treated him, but glad and relieved that he had said something. Easing off of him slowly so she wouldn't awaken him, she slipped out of bed and into the shower.

When she came out later wrapped in a towel, he immediately embraced her and kissed her head, then headed into the bathroom. She found that he had cracked the window open to let the fresh post-rain air in, and dropped her towel to let herself finish drying in the sunlight. He reappeared a few moments later and wrapped his arms around her from behind, as he often did, kissing her neck. Then, Kurt cried and they were back to reality.

Ava awoke that morning and noticed a bright spot of color on the nightstand. After blinking a few times and focusing, she realized it was a gorgeous yellow flower propped up in a slender vase. She smiled, and looked over at Charles, only to realize he wasn't there and the bathroom door was closed. It was her second night of sleeping in his room, and she found the gesture incredibly romantic. She looked back at the flower and noticed something strange about it: the petals seemed more orange than yellow upon closer inspection. She leaned forward, studying it closely, and discovered that they were slowly shifting from yellow to pink. She watched it with fascination, and as the transformation finished, the previously sunny flower was now a bright, almost neon, pink. She looked at it skeptically, wondering if she was dreaming, and reached for it. Just then, the flower slowly floated out of the little vase and up into the air, where it silently exploded into a shower of beautiful sparkles. She smiled at the sight as the sparkles vanished, recognizing the illusion for what it was, and looked back down at the nightstand, where she realized there had never been a vase at all.

"Good morning," Charles said as he came out of the bathroom, as if on cue.

She gave him a knowing little smirk, though her eyes gave away how touched she was by the gesture. Rising from the bed, she moved over to him and slid her arms around his waist.

"Thank you," she said sincerely.

"You liked your flower?"

"It was so beautiful," she said, and kissed his cheek.

"Well, if you're that impressed, I'll have to be sure to get you real ones, soon."

She smiled and hugged him, and despite her better efforts, felt tears rise in the corners of her eyes. Ava was always deeply touched by thoughtful gifts, and the way this one had melted her served to reaffirm how completely smitten she was with Charles. And, as she took a moment to appreciate the feeling of loving someone with every fiber of her being, the tears came, but weren't heavy enough to drip out.

Charles realized that this was a very intimate hug over something as silly as a flower illusion, but he didn't care. He held Ava tightly and rubbed her back, still in ecstatic romantic disbelief that they were together.

Later that day, Charles was heading down the hall, now able to go most of his day with no walker, when he heard a sudden metallic crash come from Hank's lab, followed by a pained shriek, and by Hank apologizing in a panic. Knowing Ava had been helping Hank that day, Charles became alarmed and hurried down the hall to the lab. He hadn't mastered running yet, but there was nothing like fear to get his feet moving.

Upon opening the door, he saw Ava on the floor with Hank at her side, surrounded by metal utensils.

"What happened here—" he started but stopped short, realizing that Ava was grasping and removing a small, sharp knife from her abdomen below her ribcage. She winced as she carefully pulled it out.

"Oh, god, Ava," he said, and immediately crouched by her side, where he became aware that the floor was wet and slippery, and placed a hand on her shoulder.

Ava let the bloody knife fall to the floor and closed her eyes as her healing energy repaired the wound. Fully healed, she opened her eyes again and let out a sigh of relief.

"Are you alright?" Charles said, genuinely concerned.

"Yes, Charles, I'm fine," she said politely but in a tone that made it seem like a stupid question, and he helped her stand.

"But that hit a major organ," she said firmly to Hank. "It's a good thing that was me and not someone else."

"I know, I'm so, so sorry. I forgot that the floor had just been mopped; I would've warned you not to walk through there."

"Carrying a box of sharp objects, no less," Ava said with a tinge of sarcasm.

Charles scowled at Hank for a moment, and then noticed that Ava had bent down to begin picking up the dropped utensils.

"Ava, no, just leave it," Charles suggested.

"It's alright," she said, adding with a sigh, "it's dangerous, so I should do it."

Then, she looked up at him.

"_You_ should get off of this slippery floor," she scolded sweetly.

Charles glared at Hank again with a sigh. "Please be more careful," he said, turning to leave.

"Wait," said Hank, and Charles turned back. "Actually, since you're here, I should let you know that I'm leaving later today. A colleague of mine says there's been some kind of an emergency at another mutant research lab down in Florida. Some kind of security breech. They need all the help they can get, so I said I'd be there."

"What mutant research lab? I wasn't aware of another one," Charles said. "And what kind of security breech are they talking about?"

"Honestly, that's all I know. The whole place was top-secret until now. I'm not even sure if they're government owned or independent. I won't know more until I arrive."

"Hmm, I'm not sure I like the sound of that. I think I should go with you."

"Oh, uh, actually, you're not…invited."

Charles raised his eyebrows in amused surprise.

"They mentioned you by name, said they were familiar with your research, and they didn't want to tear you away from your work," Hank explained.

Charles scoffed.

"Right. They don't want a telepath snooping around is what they meant."

"I had considered that."

"Well, the whole thing sounds a bit seedy, Hank. I'll see if I can find out anything else via Cerebro."

"That would be great."

Charles gathered what he could from Cerebro, and saw that the facility was indeed in a state of chaos, but he couldn't figure out much else because there were some kinds of blocks in place for all the important employees. So, with a word of caution, he sent Hank on his way and instructed him to report back.

A few days later, when he'd heard nothing from Hank, he was growing concerned. He used Cerebro again and, through the eyes of an unassuming caged animal, was able to witness a glimpse of what was happening to Hank, and saw him in handcuffs. So much for having "friends" there. Charles knew a rescue mission was in order, but he was unsure where to begin.

"What's wrong?" Ava said to Charles when he found her in their bedroom that evening.

"Hank needs our help. I have reason to believe he's being held against his will at that research facility."

"Oh, no…"

"The thing is, I can't work out how I'm going to get into that compound without…"

Ava looked curious.

"…asking Erik and Raven to help."

"So, ask them!" she responded happily.

Charles sighed.

"Yeah, I'm thinking I'll have no other choice, but I'm afraid of what Erik's going to do to that place when we discover what they're actually doing. I have the suspicion it's not going to sit well with any of us."

"All the more reason to rescue Hank and any others as soon as possible. I have to say, Charles, I've been subjected to both forced experimentation and torture – at different times – and either way, there's not much time to be indecisive."

"You're right," he said solemnly. "I'll call them immediately."

"Charles," she said, placing a hand on his shoulder, stopping him from walking away. "I'm going with you, too. Not negotiable."

"Of course," he said. "There will probably be lots of people there who will need your help."

"What have you done to me?" she said softly, with something like a sad smile, her eyes focused intently on his face.

Charles looked confused.

"I was only thinking of you," she explained.

He let out a blissful sigh and was unable to resist kissing and embracing her. As he did, he noticed that the roses he had given her a few days before were now starting to wither.

"Those are looking a bit sad," he said.

"Oh, I know," she said, glancing at them. "It just makes me so sad to throw them out."

"I guess you can't heal plants?" he said as a half-joke.

"No," she said with a little smile. "I can't heal something that doesn't have a pulse."

Later that night at Azazel's mansion, Raven was heading down to the kitchen for some pre-bedtime milk and was surprised to see Azazel already there. Her stomach dropped. She had been kind of avoiding him since things had changed, and though she felt hugely guilty about not explaining herself, she just didn't know what to say.

"Haven't seen you in a while," he said casually.

"I know," she said guiltily, "I'm sorry, I should've explained. It's just that things with Erik—"

He had been approaching her as she spoke and now put a finger over her lips.

"You don't owe me an explanation, Mystique… What is it?" he asked, shocked to see a small tear drip down her cheek, which he brushed away.

"I miss you," she said softly, having realized that all that bullshit about not knowing what to say was really a guise for the fact that standing next to him and hearing his ridiculously hot accent was killing her.

"Well, know that you're always welcome," he said, and kissed her cheek, then disappeared.

Raven sadly looked down, then took a deep breath, reminding herself that being with Azazel wasn't worth hurting Erik, and tried to take comfort in the fact that she had chosen to give it up for him. She turned toward the fridge, but then caught a figure in the corner of her eye, and looked over to see Erik in the threshold.

"Oh," she said, realizing he must've been eavesdropping from the hall. "I guess you heard all that."

He wordlessly approached her and pulled her into a hug.

"Why don't you go see him tonight?" he said, looking down at her.

She pulled back to look at his face in shock, shaking her head.

"Erik, no, I—"

"I appreciate what you did for me," he said, "but I want you to be happy."

She didn't respond, instead looking down, indecisive and concerned.

"You miss him," Erik continued. "He means something to you. There's no crime in that."

She looked up at him and studied his face for a moment through rosy eyelids.

"I'd rather be with you tonight," she said, and kissed him, genuinely touched by his selfless gesture.

After Raven had promised to stop seeing Azazel, it took a while for her and Erik to get back to feeling totally normal together sex-wise. The conversation that revealed to Raven that Erik feared losing her had been one of the most passionate moments of their relationship, which gave everything that followed an air of importance that created an underlying tenseness.

Until that night. Their kiss in the kitchen became more heated when Erik backed her up against the fridge, and moreso when she boldly wrapped a leg around his waist. Then, when they took it to the bedroom, Raven scrambled to get Erik's robe and boxers off, which made him seductively grin, and what followed was one of the hottest nights of their lives. Something about Raven essentially admitting that she'd rather sleep with Erik than Azazel – which was true – had unleashed their passion for each other in a way that they didn't realize they'd been missing. When Erik ran his fingers up her torso, kissed her neck, and put his arm around her her – when Raven touched his face, rocked her hips, and breathed his name – everything had a fiery urgency to it as if they hadn't seen each other in months. And when Erik – thrusting and rubbing – brought her to climax, Raven could feel the orgasmic pulsations all the way down to her feet.

Just as they were finished, lying there next to each other panting and smiling, the phone rang.

"Who would be calling at this time?" she said, still smiling and facing him.

"No one important," he said, shrugging it off and kissing her.

Less than a minute later, it rang again.

"Somoene's persistent," he said, annoyed.

"I'll go get it," she said with a sigh, and started to get up when the ringing abruptly stopped.

Then, there came a knock at the door. Raven got up to answer it and found Azazel there.

"Sorry to interrupt. Charles wishes to speak with you," he said, extending his hand.

"Oh," she said in surprise, and looked over at Erik, who was still naked with the sheet draped over him. "Charles," she repeated to Erik, though he'd obviously heard. He nodded. She took Azazel's hand, and immediately appeared in the phone room, where he then disappeared to give her privacy.

When Raven returned to the bedroom, Erik could see from her expression that she had much to report.

"Should I be getting dressed?" he asked, feeling like he knew the answer.

She nodded.

"He needs our help."

After they had washed up and Erik/Magneto was dressed, Raven stood observing a sleeping Kurt for a few moments before scooping him into her arms. He let out only a slight whine of discomfort and then continued sleeping and drooling.

"You could probably leave him down with Angel or Emma," Erik suggested.

"No, I'm bringing him," she said reluctantly, knowing he'd hate the idea.

"What? Why? He'd be much safer here."

"Erik, I can't leave him," she said with pleading eyes. "Not after what happened to us here, when we thought we were safe."

She paused to look down at Kurt and adjusted the blanket around him.

"I'll feel much better if he's on the ship. He'll be safe with all of us," she said.

When Charles's ship (piloted by one of Charles's students who was the best flyer in Hank's absence) was above the house, Azazel teleported the four of them up to it. He glanced down at Kurt in Raven's arms, but didn't say anything about her bringing him.

Once on the ship, Raven and Erik had a happy reunion with Charles, both stunned and overjoyed to see him walking. He embraced Raven and touched Kurt's head. When Raven and Ava greeted each other, Raven went in for a friendly kiss, but Ava shifted her head so that Raven hit her cheek. She then smiled slyly at Raven, who caught on and laughed it off. She had forgotten that Ava and Charles were now a couple and that if she suddenly started making out with Ava it might not go over so well. Then, Raven opened one of the ship's small fold-up compartments, and situated Kurt in it on top of the cushion from his crib. On the flight there, Charles discussed his plan for infiltrating the compound, explaining that it was impossible for him to tell where Hank was being held.

Once there, though, the entire plan was scrapped. Charles had asked Raven to morph into him, believing she'd be apprehended immediately when they landed. In reality, though, their landing was barely noticed by the officials. The area surrounding the compound was in complete battle mode. Everywhere people were attempting to fight off some kind of modified animals. It didn't take long for them to realize what the organization's "top-secret research" had been: attempting to mutate the DNA of animals in a similar way to human mutants.

The mutant animals – strong and violent – took notice of the ship when it landed and began attacking it. Since that would've made exiting tricky, Azazel teleported them over to an elevator that lead down to the rest of the compound, with Kurt and the pilot remaining in the ship. Once inside, Charles found that he was able to use his telepathic abilities to locate Hank within the compound. Azazel immediately teleported them to Hank's location, where they found him strapped down to some kind of experimentation table. Ava healed him, but he was still sedated, so Erik and Azazel had to lift him up for Azazel to transport them back to the ship.

"We've got to do something to end this," Charles said when they were beginning to take off.

"It's their mess, Charles. Let them clean it up," Erik retorted.

"But what if those animals get loose? They're not doing a great job of containing them. And then what new impression of mutants will that give the world?"

"I'm sure they'll understand that it was all a horrible accident and not at all our fault," Erik said, mocking Charles's usual optimism.

Charles glared at him.

"You want me to turn that place into a pile of scraps? Say the word. Want to bomb this entire area until all that's left is dirt? Say the word," Erik said, mocking again. "What'll it be, professor?"

Charles didn't have time to respond again, though, because suddenly, the plane jolted sideways and threw everyone off balance.

"What's going on?" Charles shouted to the pilot.

"Something's wrong…I lost control of the right wing, and we're losing fuel! Those animals must have damaged the plane more than we thought!"

The next few moments were a blur for everyone on board. The plane was going down in the forest next to the compound; that became clear. And then, things got worse. Azazel tried to shift his view out the window at the same moment that the plane jerked forward, and ended up banging his head so hard that he passed out, giving the rest of them no way off the plane. Raven was immediately at his side, but couldn't shake him awake. Ava wanted to reach him, to heal him, but the motion of the plane was making it hard for her to stand up; the faulty right wing was making them spin in rapid descent. And when the plane crashed into the trees and finally the ground, everything went black.

Raven awoke first to find herself lying on the side of the plane, which was now the bottom. She forced herself to get up and look around. In the distance, she could hear the sounds of growls and gunfire. Looking ahead of her, she saw Charles unconscious, but then became aware of the sound of a baby crying and was immediately on her feet. Kurt was still tucked away in the other side of the plane, which meant she had to climb up to him. She found him scared but unharmed. By this time, Charles was awake too, and had become alarmed that Ava was nowhere in sight, and the back of the plane had been ripped off.

"Ava! Ava!" he said, getting to his feet and calling her, looking out of the front window and the hole in the back. He immediately left through the hole and went to search for her in the woods.

This made Raven acknowledge Erik's absence, and she immediately hid Kurt in another storage compartment, cursing herself for bringing him, and exited as well. Since Charles had turned left in the woods, she headed straight out, and her stomach sank when, just thirty feet away from the plane, she discovered Erik's helmet on the ground.

"Erik!" she called out to no response.

Charles was almost running now, calling Ava's name, not knowing what else to do. Suddenly, there came a response.

"Charles?" her voice said distantly.

His eyes darted around, searching for her, and he saw her emerging from a clump of bushes several yards to his right, and hurried up to her. Her flight suit was torn and stained with blood, and her boots were missing.

"Ava!" he said, throwing his arms around her. "Are you alright?"

"Charles, of course I am," she said. "Why did you come out here? It's not safe. You should've stayed with the ship."

He looked at her through rosy eyelids for a moment, and then gave a sad smile.

"What have you done to me?" he said softly, quoting her.

Ava sighed and kissed him, and healed him as they embraced. They both suddenly broke off the kiss, though, when there came the distant sound of Raven screaming.

"That was Raven," Ava said, wide-eyed.

"Oh, god, she must've found Erik," Charles said in realization, and the two of them hurried in that direction.

"Help!" Raven cried again. "Ava! Charles!"

"We're coming!" Charles called back.

"Keep talking!" Ava added.

"Over here!"

Soon, they spotted her. She was kneeling on the ground next to Erik, who was lying on the ground, unconscious, with blood leaking from his mouth. Raven had tears streaming down her face as she unsuccessfully tried to shake him awake.

"Erik, please," she was saying as she sobbed.

When Charles and Ava finally reached them, it also became apparent that the sounds of the battle were drawing closer to them. Charles watched as Ava ran over to Erik and kneeled, instantly healing both of her bleeding bare feet as she did. She grasped Erik's wrist and closed her eyes, but then reopened them with a look of panic.

"No!" she said to Erik as if scolding him, and moved up to his chest, where she began CPR.

"What are you doing? What's wrong?" Raven said in confusion.

"He's got to have a pulse," she said, pausing to hold his nose and blow air into his mouth, "he's got to have a pulse or I can't…I can't…"

Her voice broke. Her hands were violently shaking as she continued compressions. She paused to touch his neck, but then went right back to CPR.

"GODDAMNIT, ERIK," she shouted in a way that Raven and Charles had never heard her speak.

Her entire arms were shaking now, and her crying was making the respiration more difficult. The thought that she might not be able to save this person who meant so much to both Charles and Raven had wracked her body with fear and panic. She had the feeling that someone was sitting on her chest.

Raven had both hands cupped over her mouth, unable to think or speak or breathe.

Charles suddenly kneeled next to Ava and grasped her arms.

"NO!" she shouted defensively, thinking he was going to tell her to give up.

"Let me help," he said calmly, and began his own chest compressions, which were stronger than Ava's.

Ava backed off and grasped Erik's wrist, trying to calm her breathing and focus, with little success.

"Nothing?" Charles asked, looking back at her.

She could only shake her head no and blink more tears out of her eyes. She couldn't even look at Raven.

Charles decided to take more drastic measures. He began pounding on Erik's chest with his fist, quickly reasoning that Ava could heal any damage it might do.

"Come on, Erik!" he shouted, blowing air and pounding his chest again.

Suddenly, there it was: a tiny blip of a pulse ran beneath Ava's grasp, and in that instant, she was connected to him with her healing energy, but just as quickly, it was gone again.

"Charles! It's working!" she shouted in panicked disbelief.

He began pounding Erik's chest more rapidly.

"Come ON!" he shouted again.

Just as his fist landed on Erik's breastbone that time, Ava's eyes widened and Erik began to glow even before her eyes were shut. Raven collapsed onto him in relief as Ava silently healed him and Charles struggled to catch his breath.

As the healing ended, Erik slowly opened his eyes, and was mildly confused to see Raven crying as he did. He sat up, and she threw her arms around him. He looked over at Ava, who was dazed and soaked with tears, and then Charles, who looked relieved. The expression on Erik's face made it clear that he didn't quite grasp what had happened.

"We almost lost you," Raven said, looking at him.

He still looked mildly disoriented, but before he could respond, she kissed him.

Charles turned to Ava and put his arm around her, silently studying her face.

"All better," he whispered, as she often said when she finished a healing.

She looked up at him to say something, but no words came. It was the first time in a long time that someone else's help had made the difference in her ability to save someone.

All of them made the trek back to the crashed ship, where Ava rushed to Azazel's side and was relieved to find that she could easily heal his concussion. She re-healed Beast as well, though he was still sedated. Their young pilot was unconscious as well, but she was elated to find that he still had a pulse, and healed him immediately.

As they had gathered inside the ship, Raven had opened the compartment where she'd placed Kurt to find…a blanket. She blinked, unable to comprehend that he could possibly have left the ship. She glanced around, expecting to see someone else holding him, then back at the blanket, and then the panic set in.

Just then, a nearby explosion sent a rumble through the ground, shaking the ship.

"We've got to get out of here; they're getting close," Charles said.

"Kurt isn't here," Raven said in a shocked calm voice.

"What?" Erik said, not believing that he'd heard her right.

She shook her head.

"He's not here," she glanced back at the compartment, "I left him here, I thought he'd be fine, I don't know what happened…I can't…I have to find him!"

She started to leave the ship, but there was a whistling sound followed by another, closer explosion. She tried not to let it slow her down, still heading for the opening. Erik stepped into her way.

"Erik! Let me go!"

"Raven," Charles began sympathetically, "they mean to flatten this place. You can't go out there."

His tone, his expression, his absoluteness, all of them filled her with rage. She pushed passed Erik, who then bent one of the loose bars of the ship around to hold her against the wall.

"No! NO!" she yelled, struggling to no avail, as the bar conformed to her shape.

Ava looked on teary-eyed, her heart breaking for her. Azazel was still overcoming some disorientation, but now stood up to take in the exchange.

"Erik!" Raven yelled. "If you don't let me go, I will NEVER forgive you."

Her panicked gaze was intense and unrelenting.

He sadly swallowed. He knew the pain he had seen on his own mother's face when she had been torn from him. But if someone could've saved her at his expense, he would have let them. And he would stop at nothing to save Raven's life, no matter what the cost.

"Do you HEAR me? You'll _lose_ me, Erik!"

"Then that's something I'll have to live with," he said softly.

Raven's eyes widened momentarily, as if she hadn't considered that her argument lacked enough persuasion.

"NOO!" she cried again, closing her eyes and struggling against the bar. "No, don't make me leave him!"

Suddenly, Azazel's hand was on her shoulder. Seeing him, she recoiled from his touch, thinking he might be ready to teleport her away.

"No!" she yelled at him, too.

"Mystique," he said calmly. "I will get him."

Suddenly her eyes were full of hope and relief.

"You can do that?" she asked.

He turned to Charles.

"Can you locate him?"

Charles blinked, and wondered why it hadn't yet occurred to him to do so. He blamed his preoccupation with Ava's safety.

"I can try," he said, and closed his eyes.

Raven watched anxiously, and the bar around her suddenly let go, causing her to lose her balance.

"A little warning?" she said, glaring angrily at Erik.

"I see him!" Charles said suddenly, opening his eyes. "Someone is carrying him…"

"Oh, god," said Raven.

"…they're about half a mile from here, heading northeast."

Azazel nodded and disappeared.

Raven sighed and rubbed her face, ready to anxiously wait, but in under three seconds, he was back with Kurt in his arms.

"Oh, my god!" she exclaimed, taking Kurt into her arms.

After Kurt was safely passed on, Azazel collapsed to the floor. Apparently three seconds had been long enough for him to get shot in the back.

"Erik!" Raven called, kneeling to touch Azazel's shoulder, seeing the wound.

Erik immediately withdrew the bullet, and Ava was already at their side, ready to do her part. Raven looked down at Kurt in her arms and hugged him, kissing his forehead, relieved that he was back and safe.

Azazel simply nodded at Ava, who smiled her signature smile, and they both stood. Raven touched his face.

"Thank you," she whispered.

"He is my son, too," he simply replied.

She leaned up and kissed him, letting her hand slide around to the back of his neck.

Finding that sight a bit uncomfortable, Charles couldn't help but glance over at Erik, who was silently looking at the floor.

When their kiss ended, Azazel wiped a tear from her cheek.

"Now that he's felt a teleportation, he may begin to do it on his own. You will need my help when he does," he said.

She nodded. "Okay."

Azazel put his hand on her shoulder and turned to face the others, who then began to form an incomplete circle. Ava put her arm around Raven from the other side and smiled at her. Charles was next to Ava, then the pilot, then Beast, then Erik. Azazel took them back to Charles's mansion, and then returned home with Raven, Erik, and Kurt.

Later that night, with Kurt fast asleep, Raven was looking for Erik, but found their bedroom empty. After roaming the halls for a bit, she found him standing outside on one of the balconies, smoking and shirtless. When she leaned against the railing next to him, he noticed her.

"Where's Kurt?" he asked, looking her over.

"Asleep," she said happily.

Then, to his surprise, she stepped forward and hugged him.

"I'm sorry, Erik," she said softly.

He blinked and returned the hug. "I thought I'd be the one saying that."

"No," she said looking up at him. "I know you were saving my life. I…didn't mean what I said."

"Yes, you did," he said with a light tone of confusion.

She shook her head. "I was scared…confused. I couldn't think…"

"I know," he said sincerely.

"I love you," she said, looking up at him.

He touched her cheek, studying her face, still surprised at her mood. She embraced him again, pressing her cheek to his chest and was silent for a while.

"I love you so much, Erik," she said after a few minutes, and her voice revealed that she was crying.

_Right, I almost died_, he thought. From his point of view, it had been more like he blacked out for a while and then woke up to crying people. He wrapped his arms around her and held her.

"I can't lose you," she said after a few minutes.

He kissed her head. She responded by leaning back to kiss his lips, and her passion grew as she caressed his neck and head, then kissed his neck, surprising him again. He moved so that she was between him and the railing, and cradling her body, kissed her lips again.

They paused to look at each other in the moonlight. She ran her hands through his hair. He caressed her lower back. Both of them wondered just how far this was going, and both immediately knew the answer.

Raven could feel his arousal, quite obviously pressing into her pelvis next to her hip. He could've bruised her, had he pressed harder. Bracing herself on his shoulders, she hoisted herself up onto the thick concrete railing, which was cold against her naked ass. She wrapped her legs around his waist, showing him just how possible the position was, and pulled him closer to her. They kissed again. She ached for him. She reached down for his belt and began to undo it. He had to break out of the kiss, surprised at her bold intentions. Sure, they both knew they were about to fuck on the balcony, but now it was official.

He dropped his pants just enough for comfortable freedom while still mostly concealing his ass from behind. She put her hands on his hips and made eye-contact while guiding him in. His eyes fluttered shut when he first felt her, and he let out sharp gasps as he pushed the rest of the way. She again wrapped her legs around him and held him close to her, holding onto him to prevent herself from falling off the railing, feeling the rhythmic motion of his hips and all that came with it.

It wasn't the most comfortable position for her, and she doubted she would orgasm, but she didn't care. She felt some kind of peaceful contentedness wash over her that, at first, she couldn't describe. There was some word or phrase that would capture what she was feeling, but it wouldn't come to her.

She opened her eyes, and before her was the cool, dark patio coated in moonlight, and so silent, save for their heated breathing. They locked eyes, and she again noticed the way the moon's ethereal glow casted shadows on his face, and took in how the scales on her arms were casting their own shadows…and she kissed him again. She knew the word.

Thanks to Ava, the word came to her: healing. Everything she felt in that moment could be summarized with "healing." She felt so alive, so full, so happy. Even as the railing stole her body heat and a crisp breeze made her shiver against him, she felt whole.


End file.
